


Things that Hide Away

by OfBloodandRank



Category: Watch Dogs (Video Games)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, M/M, Past Abuse, Physical Abuse, Please Don't Hate Me, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2018-08-08
Packaged: 2018-09-27 00:00:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 31,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9935417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OfBloodandRank/pseuds/OfBloodandRank
Summary: A well-hidden part of Wrench's past resurfaces after 5 years, leaving him thrown right back to the life he tried to run away from. Unfortunately, running away a second time isn't an option.Titled based on: Things that Hide away by The Dear Hunter.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Back with another one! I had been saying I'd do an actual multi-chapter fic (not one that is accidently too long to be a single work) XD But this one will be decidedly darker than the past two I've written thus far. I apologize in advanced >.>;

Ryan Wozniak was known for quite a few things. Short-tempered? Sure. Abrasive? Absolutely. Patient? Not so much. Especially when it came to what he saw as an act of kindness for someone else, even if they didn't exactly know he was trying to do something for them to begin with. But still, it's the principle of the matter--right? He tapped black sneakers against the floor of the game store, brown eyes scanning the inhabitants of said store. Everyone was busying themselves with whatever game they were playing, whether it be card or table top.

'Fucking Nerds' he thought as he scowled at the cashier/gamemaster who had been eyeing him with both suspicion and concern for the past 2 hours. Then again, he HAD come in, sat down and hasn't touched a single item in the shop. But he wasn't here to play any fucking games, or even mingle with these...people. He was here for one person.

Wrench.

Well, that's what he called himself now, supposedly. He can't really remember since the only thing that had occupied his mind the past few years of being away, was how to survive each passing day. Prison will do that to you. People walked in and out of the store, yet none of them really got much of his attention. He looked up at the television that was airing a news report. Something about Dedsec again. Ryan scoffed quietly, ignoring the look a gentleman behind him gave. He knew that was that group Wrench had started to associate it a year or so before he got locked up. It took quite a bit of time to track down Wrench's whereabouts and looking back, it seemed silly that he didn't start with Dedsec first. He vaguely recalled the one or two times he had been in HQ himself. Not that any of those times were pleasant, as nobody else in the group much cared for him. He wondered if that uppity chick--what was her name? Sarah? Sasha? Something with an "S". Well, whatever her name was, hopefully, she wasn't still around. Or that weird kid, Josh--or whatever the fuck his name was.

An impatient sigh ripped through his lips for what seemed the millionth time since he arrived and his mind wandered to the sole reason for his return. If he closed his eyes long enough, he could picture those gorgeous blue eyes that he was so fond of. But would Wrench remember him? Their parting was...rough, sort to speak. And after awhile of not replying to any of Wrench's letters, and the volatile visits, eventually the anarchist stopped communication altogether. Some shit about, "Needing some space", "I can't deal with the drama" or "You're fucking crazy". Whatever. That was then, and this is now. He fancied himself a new person, one who could handle situations appropriately. Unlike his...former self. He just hoped Wrench would see that too. He really did miss him, even if he never ever told Wrench that. His therapist when he was locked up told him that a key part of his recovery would be to relinquish some of his control, and learn to be vulnerable--and he intended to do just that.

Well, you know, whenever Wrench fucking gets here.

 

 

"Man, come on. The point of picking your favorite Batman is to freaking CHOOSE someone. Abstaining isn't an option."

The Dedsec gang had been hanging out for the past few hours, post mission, at their usual spot in Sausalito. Everyone else was in various corners of the restaurant, doing this-or-that, while Marcus and Wrench went on their daily nerd escapade. Today's topic: the best portrayal of batman and Marcus was not pleased with Wrench's decision to not pick sides.

"Marcus. Picking a favorite Batman is like picking a favorite child." The anarchist took a swig of beer, his mask lifted up just enough to do so. Marcus rolled his eyes and fixed the other with a look.

"Wrench you don't even like children."

"Doesn't matter. Nobody wants to NOT be the favorite child. It'll mess up the family dynamic, Marcus. Dangerous waters, my friend." Wrench smirked in amusement around his beer bottle.

"You're probably the last person to care about family dynamics"

"True. Still not going to pick."

"I swear you get off on being obstinate."

Wrench put his beer bottle down, and a small smile could be seen from what little bit of his face Marcus could even see, confirming his comment.

"I get off on a lot of things, Marcus. Care to hear the list?"

Marcus threw his hands up in the air, before crossing them, not bothering to make a remark on the suggestive tone Wrench had just now. It was extremely common for the two of them to be flirtatious with each other. Both were very comfortable with their sexuality, but most of all, with each other--so these sorts of comments were commonplace. They ranged from topics of dating (holding hands--yay, nay?) to full on sexual; Who would top? So far Marcus always won that argument as Wrench would make a "pretty bottom", which Wrench continues to deny but seems to be coming around. Oddly enough, the two weren't seeing each other or anyone for that matter. Secretly, there was a betting pool going around HQ to how long it would take for one to ask the other out. So far, no dice.

"Maybe later. Man, just pick one alright?"

Wrench grunted. "Fucking fine already. I'm going with Bale. Happy?" Wrench rolled his eyes at the pleased nod from Marcus before he put his mask all the way back down, rising up slowly from his seat before they could continue their debate.

"I'm fucking hungry. We should head back and order takeout. Youtube and food await!" Marcus peeked over at the menu that was laying a bit away from him, and none of it looked appetizing. Maybe takeout was a good idea. He got up to join his friend who was finishing off his beer, and motioning to the others to join them. Everyone grabbed their things and made their way to Ray's van to journey back to Dedsec to presumably continue their Friday evening of shenanigans.

The van pulled up to it's usual stop outside of the gameshop, and Sitara hopped out first--feeling pretty upbeat over recent events. Dedsec was gaining momentum, and followers to match. Hell, maybe this wasn't just a pipedream. The thought made her want to dance. She turned to hurry inside, eager to continue their celebrating, when her eyes spotted an oddly familiar face sitting by the window at one of the tables. For a second she couldn't place her finger on how she knew the guy sitting there, but then a sudden realization hit her.

"The fuck?" She said to herself as she stormed into the front entrance of the gameshop, making a beeline over to where Ryan was still sitting. He had dozed off a few minutes ago and was startled out of his sleep but a hand slamming down on the table he sat by. He looked up and a grimace crossed his face.

"Oh. So I guess you're still around. Uh, Sarah was it?"

Flames licked behind Sitara's eyes as she tried to refrain from smacking him.

"It's Sitara. And now that you know it. You can remember that, as you make your way out the door now. Thanks."

"Oh, but I feel like I just got here."

"Great, well now you can go."

Ryan was about to make a snide remark when the remainder of Dedsec started to make their way, Marcus giving Wrench a piggyback at the other's request. Sitara ran possibilities to resolve this situation quickly in her mind, but unfortunately, it was too late was Ryan saw Wrench first. Then he saw Marcus, and a deep frown settled on his face as he stood up.

Sitara turned back to face him, ready to continue their "discussion", but Ryan cut her off.

"So I'm gone for a few years, and you're getting piggy backs from other dudes now?" His tone was blank, but a bit of anger simmered underneath. Wrench, who had been teasingly half poking Marcus with the spikes on his mask, snapped his face towards the direction of the voice. His mask went blank as his grip on Marcus tensed a bit.

"Friend of yours Wrench?" Marcus asked innocently, not really sure why he was picking up on a change of atmosphere coming from his friend. Wrench let himself off of Marcus's back slowly, before shaking his head, though it seemed like more to himself as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing.

It was unbearably quiet for a second, except for the conversations of the other customers going on.

"What...are you even doing here?" Wrench asked quietly.

Ryan sneered. "So I'm finally out and THIS is how you treat me?" The question had more bite than Marcus felt necessary, and paired with the way Wrench flinched slightly next to him, put Marcus on alert. He didn't know who this guy was, and clearly, they knew each other, but he'd be damn if anyone did anything to make his best friend uncomfortable.

"No, no. I just...I wasn't expecting you" It seemed impossible for Wrench to be any quieter than right now, and Marcus can count on one hand the number of times Wrench has ever been anything remotely timid like. He couldn't shove down the concern that was rising in his chest. Something wasn't right.

"Hey man. It's really late, and now just isn't a good time for visitors. So I dunno, I guess you two can figure that shit out another time?" Marcus offered, always the mediator. He wanted to come of as genuine, as he usually is, but it fell pretty flat. Ryan was not buying it.

"Sorry. Who are you, again?"

"Nobody you need to be worried about."

"Good. Then you can stop speaking for Wrench."

Marcus was about to snap back before Wrench intervened.

"Guys, chill. Fuck! Marcus, it's fine." Sitara sputtered from where she still stood over closer to Ryan.

"It's FINE. Just give us a minute. Just a minute, I promise." He stressed further, knowing Sitara would continue if given the chance. But all this fighting would only make things worse.

Sitara started at Wrench for a second, before sighing and giving Ryan a nasty look.

"Fine. But anything more and I'm coming up. Armed." She made sure to not break eye contact with Ryan as she said so, to make sure he got the point. Loud and clean.

Josh had already made his way towards the entrance to HQ, feeling very uncomfortable with the tension that had been rising. Ray stood beside him, not knowing what was going on, and didn't want to get involved. Marcus was the only one who was still in his spot. Wrench turned to Marcus and patted the hipster on the shoulder.

"Go on man, I'll be down in a sec. Grab those menus so we can order."

Marcus wanted to say something further, but figured it wasn't his business and Wrench probably had a good reason to want to talk to whoever this douchebag was. He nodded and made his way over to the entrance to HQ, tapped in the code, and made his way downstairs.

Ryan sat back down, feeling himself relax a bit. "New buddy of yours?" He jabbed his thumb in the direction of where Marcus had disappeared off to. Wrench moved over closer to the other, but didn't sit.

"Why are you here?" He didn't want this conversation to go on longer than necessary. For his sake, and Ryan's. He didn't doubt Sitara's threat for one second. Sly hazel eyes gave Wrench the once over.

"You look thinner than I last remembered. They don't feed you at Dedsec?"

"Ryan, WHY are you here?" Wrench could feel a bit of sweat trickle on his forehead behind the mask, and his hand clenched a chair that rested beside him.

"I told you. I got out...sooooo I thought I'd come see you."

Wrench's mask went blank before settling on two dots.

"Why exactly?"

"Because I'm here to take you home."

 

 

Fuck.


	2. He Said He Had a Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrench and Ryan have a "heart-to-heart". Marcus is worried, and Sitara has secrets to keep.

\--Down at Dedsec HQ--

Marcus's foot tapped impatiently, and brown eyes made their way up towards the stairwell for the billionth time since he sat down. The events of earlier kept playing around in his mind, and even work can't keep him preoccupied--nor the music in his headphones. He sighed and gnawed at his lip. He hoped Wrench was okay. That Ryan dude seemed like bad news, or at least that's the vibe he was getting. Sitara certainly didn't like him, and she liked most people. Something wasn't right, and the more he thought about it, the more his mind raced. But he didn't actually know what the guy's deal was, or even who he was. He turned over to see Sitara similarly checking up towards the stairs, presumably waiting for Wrench to descend them at any moment.

With a long sigh, Marcus closed his laptop--giving up all pretense of work, and walked over to have a talk with Sitara. Sitara looked up as Marcus approached, and she put her phone aside. "Hey, Sitara. Can I...ask you something?" Sitara furrowed her eyebrows, as Marcus was rarely this serious. "Sure, what's up?" The two sat down at the table towards the center of HQ. Marcus took one more peek up to see if Wrench would appear, and when he didn't, turned back to face the other.

"This might be none of my business, but who the hell is that Ryan guy? I've never seen you come at someone that way, and Wrench seemed...I don't know...uncomfortable, maybe?"

Sitara sighed, barely being able to hide the concern on her face "I can't get into too much detail right now...but he's Wrench's ex. Sorta. They apparently grew up together, and had been dating off-and-on before he moved here and joined us. Since they were still associating with each other at that point, Ryan started to show up at HQ--which I didn't mind but..."

She stopped realizing she couldn't really speak too much further, it wouldn't be fair to Wrench.

"Long story short, Ryan was incarcerated at one point, and has been gone for 5 years up until now--I guess."

Marcus gave her a look. "He's been locked up for 5 years? The fuck did he DO?"

Sitara shook her head. "You know I can't tell you that, but all I CAN say is that Ryan being around is not good. He isn't good for Wrench. I mean, Wrench has come so far from how bad off he was when he first got here. I don't want to see him slide back."

Marcus nodded, still wondering what exactly had happened before. But if Sitara was being tight-lipped about it, it wasn't anything good. What was Wrench getting himself into? He pushed the curiosity down, figuring he would have to have that conversation with his friend privately later.

"Well, we'll have to make sure to keep an eye on this dude then."

"If he remains in the picture, I can't guarantee Wrench's safety."

"What exactly are you not telling me?"

Sitara stood up, shaking her head.

"I can't betray Wrench's trust and just say, I'm sorry. Just...promise me you'll keep a close eye on Wrench. You're good for him, Marcus." She said softly, as if thinking of a fond memory, and went back to her corner of the room leaving Marcus lost in thought. What WAS this guy's deal? He didn't know but he had a bad feeling about this.

\--Meanwhile--

"I'm sorry, you're going to have to run that by me again. You're here to do what, now?"

"Get you, of course. And take you back to Palo Alto...start over, fresh. Like we've always talked about."

He couldn't be serious. Yet, the look in the other man's eyes told Wrench that he was 100% serious. He could barely remember the things spoken between them that many years ago. All he DID remember was a lot of sirens, and yelling. Definitely a lot of yelling. The two of them had had conversations like this so many times that Wrench barely took these "promises" seriously. But here he was. This wasn't happening. This was NOT happening.

"Okay. We need to take a few steps back, and think about this. You said that in what seemed like the heat of the moment, when you were in handcuffs. Excuse me if I didn't really take that seriously. Dude, I can't just...leave." Wrench gestured to what was around him. "I'm dedicated to Dedsec now. This is my home. I can't just bail on them."

A brown eyebrow on Ryan's face twitched but he remained stony face, his clenched fist the only indication of his true feelings on the matter. "Yeah, but how long can you really keep up this Dedsec shit? I know you guys are making waves but...come on babe, you're all being kiddies playing with the big boys. Eventually they'll shut you down."

Wrench displayed two angry apostrophes before shooting up out of his seat immediately. "If that's all you have to say, then you don't really get me at all. You can see yourself out." He pushed the chair back in, as he had eventually sat down at whatever point in their conversation. Ryan held up his hands in surrender, waving them hoping to calm the angry anarchist down.

"Okay, okay. Fuck. If they mean that much to you...but what I said still stands. You're the only thing I thought about those 5 years, Wrench. You're telling me you didn't miss me, even a little bit?"

Wrench deflated before wearily sitting down, eyeing the other suspiciously. "For the first year, maybe. But 5 years is a long time Ry." He finished tiredly, not seeing the way the other's eyes lit up.

"I haven't heard that nickname in ages..." He said softly and Wrench rolled his eyes behind his mask--he hadn't meant to say that. Silence stretched on for a few moments between the two, and Wrench started to calculate his odds of getting out of this conversation before Sitara returned to raise hell. He hadn't gotten too far into it when two hands reached across the table to lay upon his tattooed ones, causing Wrench to flinch and yank them away. He didn't like people touching his hands.

Well, Marcus was fine. He didn't mind it then. But then again, Marcus was an exception to most things. What he wouldn't give for the other to be around right about now. He looked back up and saw Ryan frown before rubbing the back of his shaggy hair.

"Yeah, guess I deserve that one. Look. I'll reason with you. I...regretfully admit that I'm basically the worst person ever. And me coming back out of the blue probably means nothing. But at LEAST let me try to make up for how shitty things were. Please?"

Ryan was begging. Well that's new. Wrench can't even count on one hand the amount of times the other did anything but demand, much less BEG him for something. He wasn't sure what to think, and all of this was making his head spin.

"Fucking fuck, Ryan. You can't just...pop up out of nowhere and ask me that shit. I just don't know...we're not the--I'M not the same person as I was before."

"If you let me do this, I won't bother you anymore after that. Just...let me do this Wrench, please."

Wrench sighed.

"....Fine. But only for a few days, and then that's it."

Ryan beamed, which made Wrench's stomach turn just a bit.

"By the way...who's that new kid?"

Wrench's mask went blank before two exclamation points lit up. He must have meant Marcus. Well, that's awkward.

"Oh, uh. That's M." He said casually.

"M?"

"Oh. Yeah, I mean Marcus. His name is Marcus. He's been with us for a bit now. He's really cool, for a hipster"

He had no idea why he was telling the other this. Though he couldn't help the flutter that wouldn't die down in his chest whenever he spoke of the hipster. Ryan didn't look so impressed and waved his hand dismissively.

"Eh. Didn't look that cool to me."

Wrench rolled his eyes in return. "You asked."

"Well, you two DID look extra cozy when you first got in." There was a lingering bite to his comment, and Wrench couldn't place why the other seemed so irritated over a guy he doesn't even know.

Oooooh.

"...Are you JEALOUS?"

"I don't know, SHOULD I be?"

"For fucks sakes. I'm not doing this right now." Wrench shot up out of his seat, and quickly pushed his chair in.

"I said that you can make it up to me, but just because you're here doesn't mean you can just ask me personal shit about my life. You forfeited that right long before now. We'll talk later."

"...Fine." Ryan got up with a grunt, seeing that Wrench wasn't going to continue their conversation any further. Little shit. But if that's how he wanted to be, then fine. At least he gets a chance to fix this shit, and maybe he'll see that he doesn't need this Marcus kid.

Wrench made his way towards the entrance to HQ, but not before turning to watch Ryan (thankfully) leave the gameshop. He finally exhaled, not realizing he had stopped breathing for that long. Part of him knew that it wasn't the best idea letting Ryan be remotely near him, and he vaguely wondered if maybe he should call the cops. Would a restraining order be too much? He seemed harmless for once. It was hard to gauge what Ryan he was dealing with this time, and that makes him nervous as fuck. He quickly punched in the pass code, and finally made his way downstairs. In his haste, he didn't notice the pair of eyes watching him as he did so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that this chapter is shorter, but what I had planned next seemed more suiting for it's own chapter. Don't worry, everything will start to take off in Chapter 3!


	3. The Procession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shit hits the fan, and Sitara lets something slip.

Heavy footsteps echoed through the otherwise quiet hacker space as Wrench made his way downstairs to join the others. Both Sitara and Marcus looked up, and quietly breathed a sigh of relief that the other male was not with the engineer. Maybe he had sent Ryan on his way, Sitara thought feeling a bit of pride in the other. She never really understood why Wrench felt so obligated to be close to the other back then, and Wrench never told her--but she knew the two had history.

"What was that all about?" She inquired as Wrench started to busy himself with miscellaneous whatnots that scattered his bench. She noticed the pause in his movements, and he didn't bother turning to face her.

"Not much. We just talked." He replied rather shortly.

Sitara put her phone in her pocket and faced him with her arms tightly crossed. This behavior was all too familiar.

"Talked? About what?"

"Stuff."

Yep. This was the same kind of bullshit answers Wrench would give back when he first joined Dedsec, anytime the topic of Ryan came up. That feeling of pride she had a moment ago was stomped down, and quickly replaced with both anger and disbelief. Wrench wouldn't let this asshole have another go, would he? He had to know better. The tension in the room rose and matched the tension in Wrench's body as he tried his best to ignore the intense gaze coming from Sitara. Marcus, who had been trying to make himself invisible, had stopped typing on his laptop--his gaze shifting between the two. He sensed a fight approaching. But before he could put the fire out preemptively, Sitara had already gone to the offensive.

"Stuff, you say. Oh so like, just hanging out until he eventually talks you into letting him move back into your life? That kind of stuff?"

"Sitara, mind your business." Wrench didn't stop working, but the warning in his voice was clear. This was not a conversation he was going to have right now, especially in front of Marcus. By this point, everyone else in the hacker space had stopped working and were peering nervously in the direction of the two bickering Dedsec members. Sitara removed herself from her corner of the room and made her way over to the Wrench bench.

"No, I'm not going to mind my own business. Clearly, you have no intention of using the RATIONAL part of your brain. So let me help you. I don't know what he said to you, but we both know he's full of shit. If you let him hang around, it's all gonna go back to the same shit like last time."

"The fuck would you know about it?" Angry dashes were a permanent fixture on Wrench's mask at this point.

"Well considering I'm always the one patching you up after he beats the dog shit out of you, I'd say I know plenty."

Marcus shot up out of his seat, half from shock and the other half from being startled when Wrench throws the gun he was tinkering with across the room. Everything went immediately silent except for the heavy breathing coming from the agitated engineer and the sputtering coming from the gun that laid on the floor in multiple pieces.

"Guys." Josh spoke up, not wanting to get in the middle of this, but the anger radiating throughout the room was making him anxious. He was swiftly ignored as the two continued to argue.

"GUYS!" Marcus yelled, surprised that they'd actually be fighting like this. Granted, it did seem like she wasn't supposed to say any of that out loud. But then the reality of what she said finally hit Marcus, and he felt like the ground might slip out from under him at that very moment. Maybe Sitara was exaggerating out of anger? Or maybe that private conversation with Wrench needed to come sooner than he had expected.

"Guys. Please. Let's just all calm down, and just chill okay? Don't say shit you don't mean and can't take back" Marcus said to them both, always the mediator. But Wrench wasn't having it.

"You have a lot of fucking nerve. So what, you helped me once or twice. Now I have to kiss your ass too? No. Fuck that, and fuck you." He said and moved past Marcus, swiftly yanking his arm away when Marcus gently tried to grab hold of him. Marcus sighed as Wrench stomped back up the stairs, and out of HQ. Sitara crossed her arms tightly and mumbled something bitterly.

"What the hell was THAT about? Sitara, what am I not being told here? Seriously if Wrench is in danger, I need to know." And he did. Because he couldn't bear the thought of Wrench being hurt somehow and he could have stopped it.

All the anger that was within Sitara released when she exhaled, immediately being replaced with weariness. She motioned for Marcus to follow her to sit down a bit away from the others.

"Look. Wrench may never tell you, and he has his reasons I guess...And he may hate me forever for letting you in on all this shit, but you deserve to know what's going on."

Marcus nodded and swallowed the lump of concern that was welling up. This didn't sound good at all. Sitara sighed and fiddled with her side ponytail.

"The reason Ryan was in jail is because he was charged with Assault with a deadly weapon."

Marcus snapped his head towards Sitara so fast that he thought it would snap.

"Please tell me you're joking" If he had to go find that asshole, God help him.

"Marcus...he fucking beat Wrench half to death. I found him myself hiding in his garage. I took him to the hospital, but he almost didn't make it."

Marcus took his hat off and rubbed his hands over his eyes, feeling multiple emotions bombarding him at once. Sitara put her hand gently on his back to steady him.

"I think it's time for you to know what happened. From the very beginning..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this one is a bit short, but I wanted the next chapter to be backstory which would be significantly longer. Don't hate meeeeeee. I'll likely have the next one up in a few days to compensate!


	4. The Fire(Remains)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sitara gives Marcus the lowdown on the volatile relationship between Ryan and Wrench.

Sitara and Marcus had both wordlessly left the hacker space HQ, making their way to the nearest park. Somewhere where Wrench wouldn't find them readily. Granted, as mad as he seemed earlier--it seemed unlikely that he'd even search for the pair. Marcus sat down without a word, and turned to Sitara to give her his undivided attention. He hadn't fully processed the information he had been given not too long ago, and the desire to know what the hell happened to Wrench took him over completely. Fuck, he knew this Ryan dude was bad news but he never imagined that things were this bad. Sitara took a deep breathe and spoke slowly, choosing her words carefully.

"I don't know all the details, but I can tell you what I do know and what I've gathered from small bits Wrench had mentioned when he first joined Dedsec."

Marcus nodded.

"So. Wrench and Ryan grew up together in Palo Alto." She stopped short and gave a short snort at Marcus's expression. He would have never guessed Wrench to be from such an incredibly wealthy neighborhood. Not with the way he seemed to abhor people from areas like that. Maybe that was why.

"Anyway. Their families apparently were close friends and business partners I guess, so they were kinda shoved together often. Sort of like rich people play dates." She shrugged, not really knowing that sort of thing personally.

"So yeah. From what Wrench has said, they practically spent all their time together. Obviously he knew how Wrench looked before his mask. While I didn't know back when Wrench joined us, that he had...that burn mark...I guess it sorta makes sense why they're so close. Since that isn't a birth mark, Ryan knew his face before and after. I don't know how he got that burn, and he'll NEEEEEVER tell me. But I guess Ryan stuck around even after it happened, so Wrench had loyalty to him for that. That, and the two were dating."

Marcus made a face, not hiding his disgust. "But you don't like this guy, Sitara. You haven't exactly mentioned why yet." Sitara put up her hand to stop him.

"I'm getting there, be patient." She said as Marcus deflated a bit. He just wanted to get to the part where he knows why he needs to go kick the dog shit out of that douche, but he knew that going into this with full knowledge was also important. It was strange. For someone who tried to be as outlandish as possible, Wrench had a lot of secrets deeper than he'd ever let on. Maybe that's why the hipster was so unbelievably drawn to him.

"Right. So. They apparently dated for a few years in their teens up until Wrench joined us a few years back. I don't know his exact age but I know he's basically the same age of all of us. So he would have been 19 when he joined us. Well Ryan didn't particularly care for us, Dedsec, or our cause. He...didn't really get it. He's kind of a meat head, if I'm being honest. But Wrench came to us in a bad place mentally, so I think he was seeking out some way to feel useful. They argued about it, and literally everything, ALL the time--but especially this. Wrench really put himself to work and good use once he got here, even though he wasn't nearly as interested in being apart before you got here. But still, he did seem to enjoy being needed. I think he needed this for his own sake. I don't know how his home life was, but anyone who wears a mask to hide their face does it for a reason."

Marcus nodded to himself as he thought to when he first saw Wrench's face. At the time he couldn't even begin to process the feelings he had about the situation that threatened to swallow him whole. He had wanted to say so much to the other about what he thought of his face, but he didn't think Wrench was ready to hear that. He also didn't know why Wrench hid his face, but the Wrench he saw that day was VERY different than the one he saw every other day. He too didn't know anything about Wrench's life prior to Dedsec, but he could guess there was a lot of pain that went with it. He hoped someday Wrench would let him shoulder some of that hurt...

He snapped back into focus, realizing Sitara had started speaking again.

"But that's not important to what I'm telling you. What IS important is that, at first I didn't think much of their arguing. Wrench has a temper as you know, and is liable to say anything and everything. Well Ryan has a temper too, but is definitely more volatile. The problem was that Wrench refused to leave the group, and Ryan thought all of this was silly--as he put it. It wasn't until Ryan stopped showing up that I noticed Wrench started to act differently. He didn't have the hoodie and spiked jacket then like he does now, so he only wore t-shirts and jeans like the rest of us. But after awhile he started to wear hoodies, or long sleeved shirts under his tshirts...even in the summer. But one day I guess he hadn't been paying attention, and he forgot to cover up his neck, and I noticed a bruise there. And it looked fresh."

Marcus felt a lightbulb turn on. "He was wearing hoodies and long sleeves to cover them up...." Sitara nodded.

"Yeah..and that's only the start. I didn't say anything cause I didn't know where it was from. It didn't click in my mind to even think that it was anything other than a random bruise. We all get them, and Wrench is pretty fair skinned. It wasn't until more of them started to pile up. I would see them peeking out on his neck, or on his hand if he rolled his sleeves up to do something. I don't think he knew I had noticed, and I didn't want to say anything cause then he'd clam up and I'd never find out for sure. It wasn't until I saw Ryan manhandle him with my own eyes that I knew for sure it was true."

"You SAW him?!" Marcus's eyes widened and rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit overwhelmed at the information.

"Yeah. Ryan was often come to HQ to see what he was up to, or bother him mostly I think, and Wrench would get either irritated OR Ryan would get irritated and they'd argue like always. But what I noticed more so at that point is that Wrench would be particularly jumpy, especially if Ryan was around. And as you saw, Ryan is a big dude so I imagine he is pretty physically capable...So one day they were fighting up at the top of the stairs, and I was kinda peeping in on them, and I saw Ryan grab Wrench by his neck."

She was interrupted by a "Jesus" that escaped Marcus's lips.

"What did you do?"

Sitara sighed. "Nothing. I didn't want to escalate the situation."

"You did the right thing. But did anything else happen?"

"No. Wrench conceded to leave for the day and I guess go do whatever Ryan felt like doing. He came back downstairs to get his stuff, and didn't mention it. I ended up pulling him aside in private a few days later to confront him on it. But it did not go well. He was incredibly defensive, and denied all of it--making excuses here and there. I tried to tell him that we could help him, but he wasn't having any of it. After that I didn't mention it again, but nothing got better. Everyday Wrench came in, he seemed more...I don't know...defeated maybe? Some days he'd walk in with a limb, but made up some joke to cover it up. By that point, the rest of Dedsec here could all tell what was going on. I didn't even have to spill the beans."

Sitara took another breathe and shook her head, more to herself than to Marcus.

"It was as if Wrench felt that it was either okay for this to happen or that he somehow deserved it. Cause he tolerates zero bullshit from literally everyone else but with Ryan...every time that guy was anywhere NEAR him he'd just 180. I couldn't stand the way Wrench would just tense up, as if expecting a hit. After awhile I just couldn't deal with it so I just confronted Ryan on it when we were all together."

Marcus shook his head, feeling nervous for whatever reason. "I assume that didn't go well." Sitara gave a humorless chuckle as she recalled the situation.

"I've had better moments, but I just couldn't just let Ryan continue to prey on Wrench like that and turn a blind eye to it. Well, we all got into a shouting match at each other. Ryan stepped up to me as if he was going to do something, and Wrench got between us to prevent him from doing anything. Horatio had stepped up and Ryan decided to back down cause it was then two against one. He tried to force Wrench to go with him, but I Horatio basically held him back from going. Marcus, the way Ryan had looked at Wrench? Hell even I was afraid for a second. That dude is fucking nuts."

Marcus put a hand on her shoulder. "I can't imagine. Fuck, this shit is crazy. Well how do we come to the part where he's in jail? Wouldn't that have been the last time he'd come by?"

Sitara wiped at her eyes that were starting to sting. "He ended up going back to Ryan's place later that night I guess."

"What?! Fucking why?"

"I don't fucking know, ask him! Look...I didn't even know that he had until Wrench came to MY apartment in the middle of the night. Marcus, I had never seen Wrench that way. His mask was only on his face a little bit, just enough to stay and there was SO much blood. Just all over. His shirt was ripped in places and he didn't have his hoodie, so I could see all the bruises and scars. I patched him up myself that night. Though he wouldn't let me fix his face, of course. He did that in private, but the rest I patched up. I didn't even know what to say, I was so fucking mad that he'd just GO back as if earlier hadn't happened. Wrench wasn't feeling really chatty so I didn't get anything from him. All I remember asking him was why he went back, why did he let Ryan do this, why are they even still dating! And do you know what he said, Marcus?"

At this point, soft tears quietly fell from her eyes, but she wiped them not wanting Marcus to feel bad. But the pain for her friend was there. Marcus rubbed her shoulder before silently shaking his head.

"He said that he dealt with ALL of this because he didn't deserve any better. Like, he actually felt so low on himself that he feels as if this is the best he can get. I didn't even know what to say. It hurts to think that he feels that way and can't even see that he deserves to be treated fairly." She said as she wiped her eyes, before sniffing a bit.

"Sorry." She said with a shake of her head. Marcus smile kindly at her. "It's okay. I'm glad you were there for him."

"Someone had to be. Wrench had nobody else when he came to us. I wish I could say that things got better after that point, but no. They only got worse really. But at least Wrench started to avoid Ryan. But Ryan is incredibly possessive. So he'd show up even when he'd call Wrench, and Wrench would say he didn't want company or that he was busy. That asshole would still show up, and yell the nastiest things from outside of the HQ door. Wrench refused to ever call the cops on him, or get a restraining order or you know, break up with him. Though I can't imagine Ryan would just go away cause Wrench told him to, he never ever did. It was to the point that he'd start to FOLLOW Wrench when he was out doing stuff for Dedsec, or going back and forth to the garage. It was scary at one point cause he somehow had broken in and vandalized all of the stuff in Wrench's garage. This was before he got all the security stuff up like he has now, but I had never seen Wrench so upset. So he calls Ryan over and they of course get into another argument. By now, I had had to patch Wrench up at least 5 or 6 times since the first incident. I was kinda thrilled that Wrench was standing up for himself. But Ryan seemed more off his rocker than usual, so I was concerned that maybe that wasn't the best time to be brave."

Marcus frowned. "What happened?"

"Nothing. Not then. Wrench said he was done. Done with them, as in their relationship. And ryan left. He just bailed, and it was super weird. We were all so relieved, and for a few weeks things were alright. Ryan never showed up, didn't call. Wrench hadn't seen or heard him, and so we kinda all thought it was over. And then Wrench up and disappeared during one of his Dedsec errands. I couldn't track him cause his phone wasn't on him which was suspicious cause his phone was ALWAYS on him. We tried different tactics to find him, and Horatio had went out on an actual search. We were seconds away from thinking about filing for a missing person, when I decided to go see if he was at his garage one last time. Well I found him there trying to patch himself up. He saw me first and tried to hide but I did find him. Marcus I couldn't even SEE much of his face with how bad it was. His entire right eye was swollen shut, purple to the point of almost black. His nose was likely broken. His lip was swollen and split open to all hell. His mask was nowhere to be found, but a small chunk of it was with him on the floor. So I think maybe it had been broken. And he had so much blood coming from his head, and there were shards of glass and I don't even know what else up there."

"Holy mother of God. Wait. I just. I need a moment, Sitara" Marcus closed his eyes and tried not to envision the easy picture Sitara was painting for him. Images of Wrench uselessly trying to put himself back together, in more than just physical, in his garage--alone, made Marcus want to hit something. No wonder Wrench had such a low self-esteem...

"Well, that ended up being the last thing to mention honestly. I dragged Wrench away from his corner and called Horatio and Josh. We ended up having to physically get him into Horatio's car to take him to the hospital. We weren't much back then as Dedsec, so we were actually able to call the cops and tell them what happened. Well, Ryan was arrested shortly after. All the evidence was stacked against him. He tried to hide the tire iron but they found it. And there was glass in his garbage bin. The same glass they had to remove from Wrench's head. He ended up getting 5 years for it. It would have been more but it was reduced due to his supposed mental issues, or whatever bullshit his fancy ass lawyer spun up in court."

Sitara sighed tiredly feeling like she had gone through the ordeal all over again.

"He was hauled off while Wrench was still in the hospital. He had slipped into a coma for short while from the head trauma and we weren't sure if or when he'd come out of it. He came out of it, thankfully without any brain damage or anything, and we got him up to speed on everything that happened once he was hospitalized. He was actually relieved, and I could just see the shadow lift off his shoulders. I legitimately thought all of this was over. We had all forgotten about the ordeal cause I mean 5 years is a long time. But now he's HERE again, and fuck. Marcus we can't let him do this shit again. I'm afraid of what he'll do to Wrench if we let him. And I really don't know if Wrench has the willpower to stand up to him."

Marcus squeezed her shoulder, staring at her with fierce brown irises. "He won't need it, because I won't let that assbag anywhere near him. Don't worry Sitara, I'll handle this."

Sitara felt herself relax, giving Marcus a watery smile and pulling him into a hug.

"Please don't let Wrench do this to himself..." She whispered into his shoulder and Marcus gave her a squeeze before pulling back.

"Marcus. If anyone can help Wrench, it's you. He cares about you, and values your opinion. This needs to end, for real this time. Or I don't think Wrench can ever come back from this if we don't stop it."

Marcus stood up and pulled Sitara up with him before shooting Wrench a text.

'U busy?'

Not even a moment later he got a reply.

'for u? never ;)'

'k. i'm heading over with pizza.'

'cool, rooftop.'

'see you soon'.

Marcus looked back up at Sitara as he placed his phone back in his pocket, and the two gathered their belongings.

"I'm gonna go talk to Wrench now, hopefully talk some sense into him."

Sitara straightened and turned to face the hipster.

"Well. Like I said, I don't know all the details. Only Wrench knows, and I can't imagine he'll be forthcoming. Just...be prepared for the worst to come." She said quietly, before patting Marcus on the shoulder and departing back to HQ. Marcus looked around at the empty park, wondering what he was getting himself into. But this was Wrench, and no price was too high if it meant the safety of his friend. God be damned if he'd sit around and let any harm come to the anarchist. Not if he had anything to say about it. And boy, did he ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well there we go! Some backstory! You'll hear Wrench's side of things in the next chapter. I hope you guys liked! Sorry that there was so much dialogue xD


	5. Squeaky Wheel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrench and Marcus have a heart-to-heart.

Marcus never knew or asked why Wrench was so fascinated with being up high. This particular rooftop had slowly over time became their personal spot for whenever one of them needed space, or needed to speak to the other in private--away from the other members of Dedsec. Granted, it was also a great place for their weekly Friday evening hack sessions filled with pizza, inside jokes and of course--beer. It had become a sacred haven of sorts for the two of them, and for that Marcus felt a little flutter swell in his chest again. He couldn't have that sort of thing with anyone else, and had no idea how this could happen so naturally between them. Yet, that's what it was. Marcus saw the familiar meme covered spiked vest that adorned his friend, long before he made his way up to Wrench who was sitting cross legged and staring out into the evening city sky.

"Yo man, sorry it took so long. I wasn't expecting so many people to be at the pizza joint. It's like, tuesday." He joked as he sat down, placing the large pizza and case of beer down between them. He was met with two carets on Wrench's mask as he nodded his thanks, lifted up his mask, and dug into a slice of pizza the hipster handed him.

"So--" He said in between bites. "You know I gotta ask what the hell was up with you earlier. I know you and Sitara can butt heads time to time, but you were going for the jugular man." He said before grabbing another piece to scarf down. Wrench shook his head before opening up a bottle of beer and putting it to his lips first. After a few swigs he set it down a bit more harshly than he had intended and turned to face Marcus.

"Sitara overstepped her boundaries. Not much else to it. Besides, I'm sure she told you everything by now." Marcus froze, not sure how the other even knew that. But while Wrench was a lot of things, stupid wasn't one of them. He might be loud and obnoxious, but he was incredibly intelligent and more perceptive than people would give him credit for.

"Okay, she and I did have a talk. But only because I had no idea what was happening. But there's always more than one side to the story. And since all of this involves you, I didn't think it would be fair to just go based off on how Sitara saw all of this." Not that he doubted what Sitara had told him, but he needed to know what was going on in Wrench's head. What could possible make him put himself through this? It was a side of Wrench that Marcus would have never thought could exist. But it did, and he needed to do what he could to help. For Wrench's sake, and a bit of his own. Wrench had been quiet for a bit, his body language saying he wasn't in the mood to talk about it.

"Wrench, you know I'd never pry into your personal life. But man this shit has caught me off guard. I thought I knew most of what there was to know about you, minus I guess your family and all that. But I guess I know zero about your past...and this ryan dude is here now and I don't know what to think. I'm just worried about you...that's all." That wasn't all, they both knew that. His tone was thick was worry and for that Wrench felt a pang of guilt. It was true after all. Marcus NEVER made Wrench do anything he didn't feel comfortable with. Marcus was the only one who had never asked him about his mask upon meeting him, and even upon realizing Wrench never removed it. Sitara, Josh, even Horatio had inquired about it at some point after they all met. But Marcus just went with it, figuring Wrench had his reasons. And that was partially the reason Wrench felt the need to get to know him more. Even with all the weird quirks Wrench had, and even with all the secrets he kept to himself about his past--Marcus never butted his nose in where it wasn't invited. Marcus himself was an open book with the anarchist, yet Wrench held so much back. And as many times as Marcus has had his back without question...

This was the least he could do. That, and he knew that Marcus was semi involved now. Might as well.

"Well, what did Sitara tell you?" He almost didn't want to know the answer to that one.

"Uh. Well. She said you and him grew up together practically. Aaaaand at some point things got rather physical?" He didn't want to divulge all of what she had told him, fearing it would cause more friction between Sitara and Wrench. Wrench gave him the side eye as he took another swig of beer before tossing it beside him carelessly and opening another one. He took one more sip and then placed it in his lap.

"Okay, look. The thing you need to know about Ryan is that he isn't a bad guy. Not really." Marcus made a face at him and raising his hand to cut Wrench off before he could finish that sentence.

"So he ISN'T physical with you? Cause if he is, that's like, the very definition of a bad guy"

"Are you going to let me finish or what?" He said with more bite than he intended, but he knew Marcus was gonna jump to the defense. It didn't feel like Marcus was going to understand this whole thing, but he'd tell him anyway. Marcus mumbled an apology before growing silent, allowing Wrench to continue.

"I know that Ryan has his...problems. But you gotta understand where I'm coming from with all this. What I imagine Sitara told you is all true. Yeah, he and I both grew up together. We were neighbors. Both of our families were super rich and shit, so they always put us together since we're both only children. We both hated our parents, so I guess that's where things started. My parents were elitist as fuck, and always wanted to feed me that us vs them bullshit. That, and I had alot of issues as a kid. Even before the burn mark. His parents weren't super assholes in that way, but his dad was really abusive with him for awhile and his mom did nothing about it even though she knew. So I guess that mutual hatred of that kinda lifestyle made us close."

Marcus nodded. "I can see that. I'm sorry your parents were dicks, man." Wrench chuckled so quietly, Marcus almost didn't hear him.

"Well I at least had someone who understood. At one point of another, things just got kinda sexual between us. Not in THAT way. But we kinda came out to each other. And I guess dating just fell into place after that. We were 16. Well our parents found out by accident and of course THAT did us no favors." He paused and reached up under his mask to lightly stroke the lower end of the burn mark on his face.

"Then I got _this_ and things with my parents had gotten so fucking bad. No psychiatrist or family counseling could seem to help. So we both decided we'd just fuck off and run away. So we did. He stole money from his parents, since they never paid attention to shit like that. I didn't cause I would have rather starved than use my parents money for any reason. We ended up getting a decent place together cause Ryan had connections since we weren't 18 and that's kinda how things started."

Marcus closed the pizza box that was now nearly empty and took a moment to internalize what he had heard so far.

"So then what changed?"

Wrench sighed and leaned back on his hands, not bothering to lower his mask.

"Everything did. I thought that being away from home would solve everything. And for the most part it DID. But I still felt, I dunno, empty or some shit. I guess I didn't know where to go from there. I felt stuck. Eventually the money we had was starting to run out, so we had to figure out what to do to make ends meet. I hadn't done much hacking at that point, though I knew a thing or two. But I didn't know if I wanted to risk trying and getting busted. So things were tense a lot in the apartment cause of that. He said he felt I wasn't trying hard enough for us. I also wasn't able to get a normal job...cause I had the mask at that point. And who's gonna hire me, right? But Ryan was fairly normal looking, so he ended up finding a place to work at. But that meant he brought home all of the money, which was a point of contention more than once."

"It sounds like you guys were a married couple man, not gonna lie"

Wrench scoffed.

"Yeah. It was kind of like that, I guess. Things weren't TOO bad at first. But we did argue. A lot. For mostly money reasons, but also cause Ryan had a jealous streak a mile long. It didn't matter who it was, any male that I talked to, he felt as if I was trying to flirt. Which is ridiculous cause my flirting is terrible." The two genuinely laughed at that one.

"...So is that when he would get handsy with you?" Marcus hated putting it like that.

"Eventually. The arguments started to increase in frequency and intensity. But it would be on anything at that point. Literally anything would set him off. And yeah...one night it was a particularly bad night and he did hit me in the face. But it seemed like a gut reaction so I didn't DO anything about it. He was so fucking stressed out all the time. And don't give me that look, I know that's making excuses. But Marcus, he's the ONLY person who had liked how I look before AND after the burn mark. Granted, he wasn't a fan of the mask, but he put up with it."

Marcus wanted to tell Wrench how untrue that was so badly, but he doubted it would help anything. That and he had no reason to believe his feelings were returned. Plus if Ryan and Wrench were to reconnect romantically...

"Like. Ryan is the reason I wasn't homeless that entire time. He made sure we had a place to stay and food and shit. Mainly so that I wouldn't have to resort to stealing. Well, eventually I got back into coding cause I needed something productive to do. The more I did it, and the more I became aware of all the crap these lying ass corporate companies were doing, the more I felt compelled to do something about it. But I'm just one random fuckhead. Then I heard about Dedsec. I went to one of their recruit events and I'm positive Horatio thought I was a decoy by the FBI. But regardless, something about Dedsec and the cause just put a light in me. It was the kind of purpose I had been looking for. Plus it involved fucking with Bloom, and I'd never pass up such an opportunity."

"So, then you joined Dedsec" Marcus finished for him. Wrench nodded before his expression went somber, even thought the hipster couldn't see it. But he could see the frown that settled on his lips.

"Yes. But Ryan didn't like that. Ryan is a clever person, conniving even. But not smart, not like us. He never gave a shit about anything like that. And he didn't really get the point of Dedsec either. He thought we were little kids at the grownup table. But at the time he didn't do anything other than be annoyed with it. So I continued to be apart of Dedsec, and do what I do now. BUT. The more I got involved in Dedsec, the less time I had to be at home. I was the errand boy before you came along, so I was always busy. Well, that caused another reason for us to fight. But by this point, things got physical every time. And everyone had started to notice. Well, Sitara did and eventually so did Josh and Horatio probably too."

Marcus put a hand on Wrench's and looked at him gently. "They were just looking out for you Wrench."

"I know. But they didn't understand either. Though him showing up to HQ the way that he did didn't help. Sitara already didn't like him the second she met him. But once she found out what he was doing, it was worse. Josh was afraid of him. And Horatio said he wasn't even allowed to come back. Well eventually he made an ultimatum with me. I either stayed with Dedsec or I stayed with him. I couldn't have both. Actually the way he put it was that I had to leave Dedsec, there wasn't really an option."

"So what did you do?"

"I left him. While I wasn't super close with the others, I still felt like I had found a place where I was tolerated. Hell, maybe even liked. At least my intelligence was appreciated, even if it came with weird ticks. He just couldn't see that being in Dedsec made me happy. I rarely had reasons to feel happy then. Well, he was not fond of that answer so....we ended up getting into an actual fight. Well, it was kinda one sided cause I wasn't much of a fighter then. So it was him mostly getting free hits." Wrench shrugged and Marcus made an uncomfortable noise next to him.

"I didn't know where to go cause he kicked me out right after. I didn't want to go to HQ cause maybe everyone would be there. Sitara seemed like the only person at the time I could go to, so I ran to her place and she patched me up. Well she freaked out first and THEN she patched me up. We ended up arguing too cause she had seen some bruises on me earlier that day and said that I should just leave him." He shook his head. "I really should have..."

A quiet washed over them for a bit and Marcus squeezed the hand that was gently in his, encouraging him to go on.

"Well. I guess Ryan wasn't expecting me to actually leave, and I didn't really either. So he texted me...and I don't know, M. I guess I was just so desperate to keep him around cause literally nobody else had ever given me the time of day. And he seemed like the only chance I had of not dying alone. So if I gotta put up with some bruises here and there, then that's not too bad. Or at least that's what I always told myself every time he'd get aggressive. So, I went back to him. And Sitara KNEW cause the bruises came back, and sometimes he'd fuck my back up and I'd have a limp for a few days. So this went back and forth for awhile. I'd say I'd leave him, aaaaand we'd be right back to it. Well, until after I got into a huge fight with Sitara about it. And guess where I went? Though things that night were worse than usual"

"Why? Over you still being in Dedsec?" Wrench shook his head slowly and scratched the back of his head before averting his gaze.

"I had slept with someone during one of our breakup spells."

"Wooooah." Marcus shook his head, not believing his ears. "You did what?"

"It was during one of our off times. It didn't mean anything. Just some drunk dude. But I felt guilty about it, so I told him that same night as me getting into that fight with Sitara. And he LOST it. I had never seen him so fucking mad before. I was actually kinda intimidated myself cause he's a stocky dude. Like...I thought that if I was honest with him, and at that point I felt like Sitara didn't want me in Dedsec anymore anyway, we could just go somewhere else and have a fresh start. But we couldn't, and we didn't."

Marcus frowned and scooted closer, moving the empty pizza boxes and beer bottles. "Is that...when he put you in the hospital?" Wrench nodded his head.

"Eh. You could say that. Well...he ended up breaking a beer bottle over my head. He had a temper but he was a nightmare when he was wasted. Some of it got in my eye, I think. Well, I made the mistake of hitting him back and THAT only set him off more. So he grabbed the nearest thing he could to subdue me I guess."

"A tire iron." Marcus said as a statement, more than a question.

"I thought Sitara didn't say anything much."

"Sorry..."

"No I get it. And yes, with a tire iron. He hit me in the face until I had passed out. When I woke up I was outside of his door. He had locked me out and left me there. So I couldn't go back in, and I could barely see cause there was so much blood everywhere and my eye was swollen shut. I couldn't go to Sitara, AGAIN. Especially after she said that if I went back, if I got beat up again, it was on me. And I felt like Dedsec was done with me and my bullshit so I had literally nobody to go to. So I went to my garage. Well I guess Sitara had wanted to apologize and to talk, but hadn't been able to get a hold of me so she got worried. She found me in the garage and got me to the hospital but I had slipped into a coma for almost 2 weeks from the head trauma. It was a miracle that I came out of it unscathed. Like I had memory lapses for a bit but that subsided, and I was lucky I didn't lose my eye. Other than a lot of stitches, it wasn't as bad as it should have been. But during that time, Ryan was arrested and was currently on trial--a short one anyway. He eventually got convicted and was supposed to do 10 years, but I don't know how they got it down to 5. But they did. Not that it mattered, he had orders to stay away from me otherwise that would break his parole when he DID get out, and he'd be back in prison. So I was safe at that point. But I did visit him for a bit, just to see if it was real."

"You visited him? Why?"

"Like I said. To make sure that he was actually behind bars. The visits were never great and he never wanted to see me. So I stopped going. Though, during my last visit, he said that when he got out he'd make it up to me. He said that ALL the time when we got into a fight before he was jailed, so I didn't think anything of it. Eventually I stopped going and forgot. We all had. Then you came along, and bam...here we are now."

Marcus ran a hand over his face before letting it drop into his lap, his eyebrows furrowed as his thoughts raced. He turned back to face Wrench who had grown sullen.

"Why didn't you tell me about this? I mean...I know you're into privacy but this shit is crazy. He could really hurt you."

Wrench shrugged. "I honestly didn't think to. By the time you had gotten here, I had forgotten about him entirely and was pretty much the Wrench you know now. It hadn't occurred to me to mention it. Until now I guess." He said a bit apologetically.

"You're not...really going to see him again are you?" Marcus asked hesitantly, fearing for his friend. If what Sitara said was true, and what he knew of Wrench's character, the answer could very well be yes. His friend was headstrong, but had a lot of insecurities beneath the layers of spikes and memes. Ryan probably knew that too, and how to use it against him.

"I...don't know yet. He said he wanted to make it up to me and then be on his way. I don't know if I believe that really. But I don't think he'd just go away otherwise. Though he is violating his parole by being near me, but he's counting on me not saying anything."

"Well fuck that! We could just call the cops, and he'd be gone in an instant."

"See. I'm trying to avoid conflict, Marcus. I just...I just want him to do whatever he feels like he needs to do, and send him on his way. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm not into him like that anymore. Not really." He said as he bit his lip, not wanting to say that it was because he was into Marcus. He couldn't let that truth out into the open, not yet anyway.

Marcus sighed knowing his friend was stubborn, and not likely to change his mind immediately.

"Wrench. I'm not gonna tell you what to do, but I'm telling you this is a bad idea. I didn't even know the guy but I could feel the bad vibes. I just don't want to see you hurt. Cause then I'll have to fuck him up."

Wrench ripped his hand away from Marcus's before pulling his mask down angrily.

"See, this is why I didn't want anyone involved. M, I know you care, but this isn't any of your business." Marcus hadn't seen Wrench this defensive or uptight, so he knew he hit a nerve. But Marcus was pissed too.

"Man, fuck that! I'm not gonna just sit idly by if he's going to put his HANDS on you Wrench. Are you kidding me? It might not be my business, but you're my best friend and I'm making it my business. You should know me better than that."

Wrench squeezed his nails into his palms, and Marcus wanted to reprimand him on that but knew the other wouldn't listen when he was like this.

"Marcus, I'm not like you okay? You, you have options. People flock to you all the fucking time. You're gonna find someone nice someday. Me? I'm lucky that someone even likes me at all. I'm not like the rest of you." Wrench felt the fire that had welled up in him a second ago, dissipate as he quietly admitted more of his insecurities to the other who looked at him with sad eyes. Eyes he couldn't dare to meet himself. Wrench sighed as he took his mask off slowly and set it down in his lap, not looking at the other who was surprised to see him do so.

"I'm not special, or anything for that matter. I'm not attractive or normal enough to function. I might have entertained that whole thing with the chick from 10 donuts, but I mean let's be series, it wasn't going to anywhere. And it didn't. I don't wanna sound all emo and shit, but Ryan's all I've ever had. He was loyal to me when I had nothing. So if that means I gotta entertain his shit for a few days, then let's just leave it at that. Alright?"

So many things were on the tip of Marcus's tongue at that moment. There were so many things he wanted to say.

'You deserve better than him.'

'He doesn't deserve you.'

'I like how your face looks.'

'I've wanted you since we met.'

'I'd treat you better than he ever could.'

'Please don't do this.'

But none of those happened. Instead he relented.

"Fine...but you two aren't to hang out alone. Public places only. Just...to be safe. And if he gets rowdy, then that's that. And if I gotta step in, I will--and if you end up being pissed at me for it, I'll just have to take that chance."

Wrench put his mask back on and various symbols blinked before settling on default X's as he nodded. That was a fair agreement.

"Deal." Marcus patted Wrench on the back and the two got up together.

"You up for a night long youtube loop?"

"M, when am I NOT up for the best of the internet? So long as you buy more food. And beer, definitely more beer."

"Wrench, I'm pretty sure you don't even have actual currency of any sort. Of course I'm buying."

"Cause I'm your favorite!"

"That's not the point..."

The two playfully bickered as they left their usual hangout spot, neither noticing eyes that watched them. Or the fists that clenched tightly together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for SO much dialogue again lol The next one will have more things happening :p Also, it won't likely be out until next week. I wasn't trying to have this one out so soon after Chapter 4 but I was inspired so...Yep! Anyway. Let me know what you thiiiiink. More next week <3


	6. City Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrench made a promise to give Ryan a chance to "make up" for years past. Ryan calls to collect.

A loud groan echoed throughout a lavished apartment in Palo Alto. Ryan had been trying to get in contact with the anarchist, but so far not successful. A brown eyebrow twitched in irritation wondering what the other was up to. Probably hanging out with that new kid. Marcus, was it? He angrily pressed the end call button before tossing the phone over his shoulder. He wasn't sure if Wrench was avoiding him on purpose or not. He DID promise that he'd let Ryan make it up to him, so why was he being like this all of a sudden? He felt the familiar anger swelling up in his chest and he remembered what he learned in his anger management classes as he started to count to ten, taking deep breathes. Once he felt a bit more calm, he got up and figured the best way was to go find Wrench himself. Though, if he was at the HQ, there was no way he'd be allowed in. So maybe that wasn't the best idea. He instantly lit up when he saw a familiar number pop up on his Iphone caller ID.

Wrench.

"Sure took you long enough." He said, half joking to conceal his irritation with the others supposed tardiness to answer calls. An annoyed huff was all he was met with initially, then the sound of movement as Wrench made his way to somewhere more private.

"I'm doing Dedsec shit, so I wasn't available to just pick up. But I'm free now, so what did you want?" Ryan was relieved that Wrench didn't sound too annoyed with him, so that was a good start. He laid back down on his bed, eyeing the ceiling as he contemplated how to get onto why he had been calling.

"I was wondering if you were free this weekend. I was thinking we could hang out like old times. Catch some lunch and dinner. Chill at my place. Maybe game, or watch some movies. You know, like we used to."

"Um."

"Look, you said you'd give me a chance didn't you?" Ryan's tone turned a bit sour, and he bit back the part of him that wanted to say that he knew it would be different is Marcus was the one asking. He wasn't sure he could handle the truth behind that thought. Wrench sighed and was quiet for a second.

"I was going to say that I was thinking of making plans already. But...since I did say I'd let you do, whatever this is..." He trailed off and that was all the answer Ryan needed. He sat right up in excitement, not being able to contain the grin spreading across his face.

"So you'll stay over then?"

"Woah woah. I didn't say anything about THAT."

"But it would be annoying to have to constantly pick you up and drop you off if we're hanging the entire weekend Wrench. Besides, I think we need to talk about...you know. Everything." He ended in a whisper and a silence passed between them once again. He could tell Wrench was running the pros and cons in his head, and was incredibly unsure about agreeing to this.

"I promise I won't try anything with you. This isn't to get you back. I mean I WANT you back, but if you're against it...then I'll back off. I just miss you Wrench, that's all. And it would be easier this way." He pleaded and heard a quiet sigh coming from the other again.

"Alright. But just for this weekend, and honestly that's it after this. I know you mean well but it's been years, and honestly I'd rather us just go our separate ways. I'm a different person now Ryan. We all are." Wrench spoke quietly before giving a muffled comment to someone who had apparently walked into the room before coming back to full sound.

"Hey I gotta go, but uh pick me up Friday night at 10 from my garage."

Ryan smiled a bit, though Wrench couldn't see it. "Sounds good...thank you." Wrench hung up and it left Ryan staring down at his phone before he put it aside. He hated admitting it but he really did miss the other. Those 5 years in prison really gave him a lot of time to think about his relationship, or lack thereof, with Wrench. He knew he treated the other like shit, but when he got to a certain place in his head....fuck, he just couldn't help it. Or so he told himself. Wrench had never really liked himself even before the burn incident, but Wrench had always been special. And he couldn't just let him go without a fight. He didn't know who this Marcus kid was to Wrench, but he'd be damned to lose to some hipster. Hopefully this weekend will prove successful and he can convince Wrench to give him a second chance. If he could just have that option, he wouldn't mess up.

Not this time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wrench shook his head as he ended the call. His instincts were throwing up all sorts of red flags, but he tried to swallow the anxiety down. He knew that agreeing was a bad idea. Hell, he should just call the cops and have Ryan arrested for breaking his parole. But he couldn't ignore the small tingle he got from them talking. Ryan might be a dick, but he was a smooth talking dick--if that was such a thing. That's how the two of them ended up dating in the first place. Not that he ever understood what the other saw in him. Ryan was fairly good looking, why was he holding on to someone like him? Perhaps loyalty really does make a difference. The anarchist sat down tiredly, feeling his head spin. What was he going to tell Marcus? He knew for a fact the other would NOT stand for him spending an entire weekend at Ryan's place, where nobody would be there to monitor the situation. And generally his weekends consisted of spending time with the hipster anyway.

"Yo Wrench! Coffee delivery!"

Speak of the devil.

Wrench felt his stomach flip seeing Marcus make his way into the garage and over to him. There wasn't a time when Marcus wasn't happy to see him. The yearning that he felt for the hipster was more than he could deal with most days. But Marcus was straight, right? He had to be. And even if he wasn't, why the hell would a Casanova like him want him of all people? He felt the familiar prick of self-hatred and self-consciousness but he shoved it back down so as not to worry the other.

"You're a gentleman and a scholar. Much obliged" He faked a posh accent and bowed at the other who handed him his large coffee. Marcus put the coffee tray down before grabbing something out of a paper bag.

"Oh! They had those breakfast burritos you like so much, so I grabbed 3." Double exclamation marks lit up on Wrench's mask as he snatched all of them from the hipster who chuckled and sat on top of the double by them. Wrench pulled the aluminum foil down, lifted his mask up to expose his mouth, and took an enormous bite before sighing in happiness. Marcus smiled fondly at his friend before biting into the muffin he had, and taking a sip of coffee.

"So. I was thinking that we could check out that Sci-fi exhibit sometime this weekend. I managed to snatch us tickets." He didn't notice Wrench stiffen at the mention as he was rambling on about how 'fucking cool' it was going to be and 'what are the chances of alien abduction WHILE there?'. Marcus stopped rambling when he noticed his usually animated companion was oddly quiet. Something wasn't right.

"Yo man, you alright?" He stopped eating to watch Wrench with concerned chocolate brown eyes. This was a sci-fi exhibit and Wrench didn't seem remotely interested. Yeah, something is wrong. Wrench slowly put his burrito down and cleared his throat nervously.

"Well, I already made plans this weekend. But I can go. I would just need a ride back here for it." He said vaguely. Ryan would definitely not appreciate him dipping out on their "time together" to go spend time with Marcus. So asking him for a ride back to HQ is out of the question. But it didn't seem likely that Marcus would pick him up from Palo Alto and then drive him back afterwards. Fuck, this was all complicated for no reason. Marcus stared at Wrench for a second.

"Where exactly will you be before then?"

"Palo Alto?" He answered sheepishly.

"Oh fuck no. Wrench are you kidding me!?" Marcus had flung himself off of the table, not caring that he dropped his muffin in the process. Wrench nervously clutched his coffee and was thankful that the mask offered him a way to not make eye contact. But Marcus's gaze was drilling into him.

"This is about Ryan, isn't it? Fuck Wrench, what did we even talk about days ago?"

"It's just for a few days."

"For a few days?! That's not what you said before."

"I know. We had JUST decided that today."

"We? Or you mean just him?"

"Marcus."

"Wrench."

A tense silence spread throughout his garage and Wrench couldn't bare to meet the eyes of the other. He knew the look Marcus was giving him. He knew Marcus was probably disappointed in him, and that _kills_ him to know. Marcus threw his hands up in the air before taking a long and deep breathe.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, even you said he was bad news Wrench. I know you're tired of hearing me say this. But I don't want you to get hurt. He's done enough of that already, hasn't he?" He whispered hoping Wrench would just listen for once. Didn't he see that he had everything he needed right here already? Wrench put his burrito down next to him and put the mask back on, two equal signs appearing immediately.

"It's just to hang out and talk. Nothing more, I promise. I don't want anything to do with him, and I made it clear that that's ALL it is. And that we go our separate ways after. Chances are I'm going to only stay for Friday and part of Saturday. And then leave to hang with you, and just not go back. If you want me to be honest. But I just want to get it over with. The longer he lingers, the worse it'll get. I promise I'll bail if he tries anything--okay?" He says pleadingly and watches the various emotions run across Marcus's face before settling on both disbelief and worry.

"...I hope you know what you're doing Wrench."

He didn't, but he couldn't let Marcus know that.

"It'll be fine, M. Don't worry about me."

"Wrench I'm always worrying about you." He said instantly and put a gentle hand on Wrench's arm, who was thankful his mask was hiding the slight blush. He was also glad it wasn't a large enough blush to cover his neck. Damn his pasty white skin. The two settled back into light conversation and finishing up their breakfast before Marcus was called over to HQ for a new mission. He got his bag and turned to face Wrench.

"I'll pick you up on saturday, if you want."

Wrench lit up instantly, feeling relieved he'd have an easy out--Marcus being there felt safer too. He nodded thankfully.

"Thanks M."

Marcus gave the other that damn knee-weakening smile before turning to leave but stopped after a few steps.

"Hey Wrench?"

"Yeah?" He looked up again, his hands paused from what they were working on.

"You...you're more than what you give yourself credit for. Just, don't forget that, okay?"

This time a bright red splatter slowly creeped down onto his neck from under his mask, and he nodded. He was too frazzled to really use words. Marcus smiled again and made his way out of the garage leaving the other in a profound silence. What the fuck was THAT about? He felt his heart slamming in his chest before he shook his head. No, there was no way. Marcus couldn't feel the same way...right?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ryan learned against his car as he stared up into the night sky, his foot tapping lightly as he waited for Wrench to finish up with what he was doing. He was honestly surprised with how easily it took him to convince the other to stay with him for the weekend, and that in itself gave him pause. He was initially going to bring a fancy gift but he knew the other hated fancy shit, well fancy shit that wasn't nice tech, and also gifts in general. Wrench, for as long as he's known him, was never impressed by wealth. Considering how wealthy both of their families were, that made sense. But he also knew Wrench had a hatred for those who used their wealth to belittle and take advantage of others. That was part of the reason he originally fell for the other. Wrench wasn't the most stunning looker, no. Though he was cute enough. However, it was his personality and spirit that Ryan felt a connection to. Always had. Wrench was the only person who had never just outright given into his looks and charming ways. He chuckled thinking about how Wrench was VERY outspoken about how he didn't like Ryan, nor did he want to spend time with him. Wrench was the only one who had ever called him out on his shit, and it was oddly attractive. He was also the only person who ever gave a damn about him, ever.

He sighed bitterly thinking about what his parents might be doing at the time. Hopefully dead, for all he cared. He could still feel his father's hands slamming down on him, trying to force the "gay" out of him. And his mother was too busy being drunk on wine to ever give a shit. After everything he had been through, after everyone had abandoned him (and they always did), Wrench never did. Even when they ran out of money and were broke as shit, Wrench tried to make the best of it. Even when things turned...particularly nasty. But it wasn't HIS fault. Things were so shitty back then. That's not an excuse, but the honest to god truth. But he knew Wrench expected an apology, so he'd give him one if that would make the other feel better. He perked up when Wrench appeared from the door of his garage before turning to lock the door behind him. His mask was oddly blank, but he didn't say anything.

"Hey...good to see you." He began.

"Let's just get this over with." Wrench said, his nervousness giving way to an attitude. Ryan narrowed his gaze at the other, but didn't comment. The two got into the car and Ryan turned it on before pulling out of the alleyway. As he made his way to the nearest highway, he peeked over to see Wrench with tightly crossed arms. Ryan put a gentle hand on Wrench's bony knee.

"Don't be nervous, it'll be fun. Promise" He tried to say good-naturedly but was denied when Wrench forcefully removed the hand and turned on the radio to prevent any further conversation. A sigh escaped the driver's lips but a small smile made it's way even still. If that's how Wrench wanted to be, that was fine. He had always liked the feisty one's anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here you go! A bit more insight from Ryan, which you will see more and more of as chapters continue. The next chapter will be mostly of their hanging out, so hopefully it'll pan out well. <3


	7. If All Goes Well

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrench and Ryan have that sleepover, and a long awaited talk.

There was a part of Wrench that felt uneasy as Ryan pulled into the driveway of what was an impressive looking home tucked within Palo Alto. He wondered what the odds were running into anyone he knew back then, family included. But then again, he hadn't seen them in so long, that they probably wouldn't recognize him. That, and the mask, safely conceals his past self anyway. Ryan shut the car off, gave him a pat on the shoulder, before exiting the car allowing Wrench to follow suit. While Ryan grabbed Wrench's overnight bag from the trunk of the car, Wrench let his eyes wander around the immediate neighborhood. All the homes were as pristine as he expected and the stuffiness as apparent as he remembered. It didn't seem like anything had really changed since he ran away years ago, and part of that made him pity the insufferable residents who called this place home. His contemplation was interrupted by the slam of a car trunk behind and the other male walked past him to make his way to the front door.

"After you." Ryan said with a slight bow once the door was unlocked and pushed opened. Wrench rolled his eyes, ignoring the fact that he and Marcus have done something similar repeatedly.

'But it's actually funny when Marcus does it...' Wrench sasses internally as he walked past and into the dark home. He reached a hand up where he expected a light switch to be until he eventually found it and flicked it. The immediate hallway they were standing in were suddenly illuminated and Wrench made his way further in giving everything the once over as he went. Ryan set the duffle bag down by the door and watched Wrench inspect his home.

"Whatcha think? Nice, huh? It's not my folks place, but not bad considering I had to pay for it myself. Mostly anyway." He flicked the bangs that were in his field of vision. He didn't see the emote eye roll Wrench gave him, or the unimpressed expression splattered across his real face underneath the mask. While the home appeared to be nice, fancy even, it wasn't anything that Wrench found impressive. It certainly wasn't a place he'd want to live or stay in personally. It seemed like an odd mix between bland uppity rich kid shit, mixed with college frat boy. Neither of which interested Wrench in the least. His mind flashed over to Marcus's apartment, and he felt his stomach flip. He always felt at home when he was at Marcus's place. It was a nerd's paradise, but still very cozy. It was the kind of place Wrench himself would live in if he was confident enough to have his own. Memories skirted through his head of the fun times he's had at the other's place, which seemed to become a daily affair as of the last year or so, and Wrench wouldn't have it any other way. In all fairness, he'd rather just be there pigging out on pizza and watching youtube vids with his favorite resident hipster. But he couldn't, because was was here.

Why was he here again?

A firm hand found its way to the small of his back and Wrench side-eyed the owner of said hand. Oh yeah, that's why. He sighed as Ryan removed his hand from where it was and walked ahead of him towards what seemed like an open area kitchen that lead out to a spacious living room. A massive flat screen was mounted on the wall, and the couches were large, but other than that it didn't seem like anyone really spent time there. Wrench plopped down and grabbed the remote before preoccupying himself with channel surfing. Anything to get his mind off the current situation. Ryan put Wrench's duffle bag away in the bedroom before coming out to join the anarchist on the sofa. A frown graced the otherwise handsome features of Ryan when he noticed Wrench wouldn't bother to face him, or really acknowledge him for that matter. A hand gently shot out to grab the remote from Wrench who was still flipping through stations and placing it on the glass table in front of their feet.

"Are we really going to ignore each other all night? I was thinking we could order food and talk? Maybe watch a movie after. Keep it simple?" He was trying to extend an olive branch, which Wrench found unsettling. He sighed and sat back before turning to face the other slightly before nodding.

"I guess that's fine." He said after a bit of hesitation before tightly crossing his arms. "But you're paying." A smile formed on the other's lips and he nodded back enthusiastically.

"You got it." Ryan opened up his laptop and went to grubhub to look through the list of available delivery options. He turned to Wrench who was peeking at something in the corner. He smiled when he realized Wrench had discovered his snake terrarium.

"You want to meet Larry?" He was met with two flickering question marks. He chuckled and motioned for Wrench to follow him over. As Wrench approached the tank in the corner of the room, his default X's blinked into large O's. Inside the tank was a fairly large snake that was slithering around its habitat. Ryan gestured towards the tank.

"That's larry. My pet boa. Want to meet him?" Wrench turned to face the other with double exclamation marks blinking on his mask. He hated animals, but reptiles seemed pretty cool. Though he just KNEW that snake was plotting to eat him whole. Better pass for now.

"And get within range for it to devour me? Hard pass. But I gotta admit, that is pretty metal. I thought you didn't like pets." That was one thing they had bonded over ages ago, the mutual suspicion of the animal kingdom. Ryan shrugged.

"My therapist suggested I get an emotional support animal. BUT I'm allergic to cats, and this place doesn't allow dogs. So this was the next best thing. Not really the same, but taking care of something kinda makes me feel important...needed, if you will." He had turned to the snake terrarium, staring down and quietly stroking the top of the tank. Wrench went quiet himself, a bit taken back by the other. He can't remember the last time he remembered Ryan being so open and honest about literally anything. It was one of the reasons Wrench felt that their relationship couldn't ever go anywhere, the other always seemed to be hiding something. But this behavior was certainly new. Maybe the therapy and anger management classes WERE helping. It was so hard to tell with Ryan sometimes...

"No...I think I get what you mean. That's kind of why I stayed with Dedsec this long. For once the shit I'm good at, all the stuff my parents said was a waste of time, is actually useful to someone." He wasn't sure why he felt the need to reciprocate, but there it was. He waited for some condescending remark, or some sort of ridicule but none came. Ryan looked at Wrench silently for a second before turning back to the terrarium.

"You were always good at that stuff. I think that's why i was so mad back then. You were always smarter than me Reggie. You were smarter than all of us." Wrench stiffened at the use of his birth name.

"Sorry. I forgot you don't use your real name anymore. Habit. But if I'm being honest. I guess I was always worried you'd find something bigger and better than what I could offer you. I know I'm not as smart or as nerdy as the people in Dedsec. I just didn't want to lose you when you realized we didn't have anything in common anymore." Ryan scratched the back of his head, embarrassed at the admission. Wrench looked at him with a blank mask, not expecting what he was hearing.

"How come you never said any of this before?" He honestly had no idea the other had felt that way. Ryan always acted so confident and outgoing. Wrench was the one who wasn't either of those things, not truly. Not without mask. His question was answered with a shrug.

"Can't admit weakness. Weakness cripples you." Ryan said in a mocking voice. "That's what Dad always said anyway. And I dunno. After awhile, you just start to believe in that shit." He shook his head bitterly before giving Wrench a lopsided smile.

"But hey. I didn't invite you here to be depressing. If you're up for mexican, I know an awesome place we can order from." Wrench could tell the other was uncomfortable with putting himself out on display like that, which he could certainly relate to. He gave Ryan a break and went along with the subject change.

"Yeah sure, I'm down for whatever." It was actually true. He was more than a bit surprised that so far everything had been pretty relaxing at this point. He had honestly gone in expecting the worst, but who could blame him really? The two sat down, decided on food, and sat in front of the tv while they waited for the delivery guy. Wrench fiddled with his fingers, a tell-tale sign that he had something on his mind, and the other knew that.

"Penny for your thoughts?" He was met with a blank mask and a quiet sigh.

"Don't be mad at me for asking but...what was it like?"

Ryan raised a fine eyebrow. "It?"

"Prison..."

Ryan raised both eyebrows, a bit surprised that Wrench would inquire about his detainment. He got up enough to adjust himself, and sat back down comfortably.

"Honest answer? It was the most single terrifying thing I had ever experienced. I didn't go to some cushy White-collar prison like I had originally thought. My dad wanted nothing to do with me at that point, so I was on my own. Everyday was another day to try to stay safe and sane, as much as possible anyway. I mean, nobody butt fucked me so that's an accomplishment."

Wrench let out a surprised laugh, and lightly covered where his mouth would have been if he was un-masked. "Sorry. That's not funny." Ryan shook his head also chuckling. "No, you can laugh. I have some pretty funny stories of people I met while there and stuff I saw. Stuff you'd think only happened in movies." Wrench blinked double question marks at him, tilting his head when he did so. "Like what?"

3 hours of storytelling and 2 boxes of tacos later, and the two found themselves late into the evening. Ryan belched before finishing off his last taco. Wrench had kicked his legs up on the table in front of them, arms crossed behind his head.

"So yeah. Somehow I've managed to not be arrested despite blowing up or setting fire to at LEAST 5 cop cars a year. That's my going record." Ryan snorted and kicked his feet up as well.

"You're fucking nuts. After that shit in prison, I don't even want a speeding ticket. My life as a delinquent is sufficiently over. A life of retirement and golfing sounds thrilling."

Wrench made wild gestures with his hands. "But where's the fun in that?! Unless the golf clubs seconded as some sort of dildo shaped firearm!" He said with a firm nod and Ryan shook his head again.

"Nope. Conventional as it gets."

"Gay."

"Only for you."

Wrench gave him the side eye. "With the way you used to act, I almost want to believe that."

"I'm just particular, that's all. Why have just anyone, when I could have you instead?"

Wrench took his feet off the table and slowly turned to face him, question marks blinking before they turned to astericks but he remained silent. A warm hand reached over and placed itself on his knee.

"Is...this okay?" Ryan asked in a whisper. Wrench bit his lip from underneath the mask, unsure how to feel about any of this, much less answer properly. "I don't know..." He really didn't but the hand on his knee stayed where it was.

"Look. I know I fucked up, and it's a lot for me to be around you after all that shit. I was fucked up then, but things are different now. It's like you said before, we've all changed. I just. Fuck. I just want to do things right this time. None of that controlling bullshit, or anything like it was before. You can do whatever you want, be in Dedsec, raise hell. Do whatever you want, I don't want to play house. I just want you Wrench. I know I don't deserve to ask for a second chance...but here it is anyway."

Wrench was now sitting upright, completely taken off guard by the sudden admission and request. He had kind of figured Ryan would try to get him back but he had expected the other to come onto him. Not this. He couldn't spot any deception in the other's words or face like he usually could, and it was alarming to say the least. But he didn't know what he wanted. He wouldn't admit it but he HAD thought of Ryan time to time during those years. But it's been so long...

"I. I don't know if we should do that. I mean, it's been YEARS. I tried to be there for you Ryan, but you fucking pushed me away. That was your fault, not mine. For fucks sakes you almost killed me. How do we just pretend that didn't happen?"

"We don't. I'm not asking for you to forgive me right away, and I know you won't ever forget. It's not your job to make this work, it's mine. I didn't appreciate you back then, I'll admit. But I'm here now Wrench, whether that means anything to you or not."

Wrench was quiet for a long while, thoughts moving over to Marcus who was likely worrying about him. Could he really betray his friend like that?

'But it isn't like you have a chance with Marcus anyway.' A bitter voice spoke back at him. And it was true, wasn't it? Marcus was everything Wrench himself wasn't. He had no doubt eventually Marcus would find someone worthy of him, and tire of putting up with the anarchist's pathetic self-esteem issues. He knew Marcus cared for him, but it was friendship. A brotherhood. That was all it was, and all it could ever be. So why wait around to be disappointed? Wrench hadn't noticed Ryan scooting closer to him until a hand was on the edge of his mask, avoiding the spikes on his mouth piece. Wrench grabbed his arm and shook his head. He was not about to reveal his face. He didn't care if Ryan had seen him before.

"Not...not with the lights on." Fuck, he was pathetic.

Ryan looked at him with sad eyes before nodding. "You know I remember what you look like, right?" He was met with a blank mask before sighing. "Okay, if it'll make you more comfortable." He leaned over and turned off the table lamp, and the room was plunged into darkness. He turned back only to see Wrench slowly taking his mask off, satisfied that the other couldn't see his face properly with how dark it was in the room since the tv had been shut off ages ago. A hand caressed the side of his face where the burn mark was, and Wrench turned out of the grasp.

"Sorry." Ryan whispered.

"It's okay. I just...still don't like it being touched."

"I understand."

Ryan moved his hand back to Wrench's face, but caressed the opposite side instead before leaning in. Wrench swallowed nervously but leaned in regardless. Their lips met neatly, albeit awkwardly, but it was more pleasant than Wrench imagined it would be. Ryan pulled back a bit. "If you want me to stop...I don't want your friend to come here to kick my ass thinking I took advantage of you." The thought of Marcus sent a pang through Wrench and he frowned thinking about the unrequited feelings he'd always have for the other. But he needed to throw those feelings away, they'd never do him any good in the long run. Hell, it isn't as if this would be the first time he used sex as an ulterior motive. He pushed Ryan back before climbing into his lap.

"Woah." Ryan's eyebrows shot up into his hairline practically as he held Wrench by the hips. He was NOT expecting this reaction, but it was certainly welcomed. "So is that a yes then? Cause I don't do booty calls." He joked but the erection pushing against the zipper of his pants was making it difficult for him to maintain that policy. Wrench had already started kissing at his neck, and fiddling with the other man's zipper.

"Neither do I. So yeah, I guess that's what it is." He pulled back for a second before Ryan could initiate a kiss.

"But this is the last time I'll do this Ry. If things go sour between us, then we're done. And I mean it." He was serious, or at least he tried to convey that he was. Ryan nodded quickly before feeling Wrench relax in his hold.

"I won't mess up this time. I promise. Now come here..." He pulled Wrench back to him. In doing so, neither noticed Wrench's phone lighting up from text messaged, it laying there forgotten.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marcus sat in his living room surrounded by untouched pizza, his nerves too frazzled to even entertain eating. He hadn't heard from Wrench and _needed_ to know if the other was okay. If that asshole hurt him, god have mercy on his soul. He had sent quite a few texts, and the longer time went on the more nervous he got. Fuck it, maybe he'd just go over there and find out for himself. As he got up, he heard his phone buzz and he leaped onto his phone to see that Wrench replied. As his eyes scrolled across the screen in excitement of hearing from the other, excitement quickly slowed into disbelief before he felt his heart sink into his feet.

'hey sorry I didn't see your text. Listen, I think im gonna stay over here for the weekend, but raincheck on that exhibit????'

Marcus sat there for a few moments not even sure how to respond, but heard his phone buzz again. Another text.

'are you mad at me? :(!"

He sighed before finally deciding to reply, not wanting to let the other know how hurt he actually was. He hoped Wrench knew what he was doing.

'it's cool. no i'm not mad. just be careful. cya monday'

He tossed his phone away from him and rubbed harshly at his face, trying to ignore the stinging sensation prickling at his eyes. Maybe he was wrong about how Wrench felt about him. Not wanting to linger on the feeling of rejection much longer, he decided it was time to retire to bed. Once he put everything in the fridge, he made his way to his room, and crawled into bed. He turned over to face where normally Wrench was passed out at, and then turned back to face the ceiling. This was the most quiet evening he had had in a long time, all due to the absence of the other, and he had a feeling that the other two could actually get back together. And it was in the quiet of that moment that he realized he just missed his friend. Hot tears hit the pillow underneath his head and he turned over before falling into a restless slumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry o__o;


	8. Waves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marcus confronts Wrench about ditching their plans, and things go surprisingly well between Wrench and Ryan. For now.

Wrench made his way into the already slightly bustling hacker space, hoping nobody would notice him coming in later than usual. Especially Marcus. He felt bad about this past weekend, knowing that he kind of blew the other off--sort to speak. He wasn't sure how he would be able to look the other in the eye. Marcus was a lot of things, but he certainly wasn't stupid and he would know something was up immediately. He stood in front of his trusty bench and began to work on his latest schematic. He didn't notice the brown eyes that watched him as he did so, or that Marcus had started to make his way over to the engineer.

"Yo, Wrench."

Wrench jumped, startled, and turned to face the other--his mask giving his nervousness away. Marcus almost felt bad. Almost. "He-hey, Marcus. What's going on?" Okay, that was a lame start but he didn't have much to go on. He hadn't figured out how to approach Marcus. And as usual, Marcus decided to go right for it and approach HIM instead. He felt unprepared for this confrontation if you could call it that.

"Uh, not much. Hey, what happened to you this weekend? I mean. I know you said you couldn't make it but you didn't really say why." He inquired, trying his best to sound nonchalant. While has both upset about feeling set aside in favor of Ryan, he didn't want Wrench to feel guilty. Wrench fidgeted and turned back to his station, a tell-tale sign that he wasn't sure how to say what he wanted to way--not a good sign.

"Yeah man, sorry about that. Um, I ended up deciding to stay over at Ryan's, that's all."

"That's all, huh?"

Wrench flinched slightly at the deadpan tone from the other, as well as the look he was positive he was getting.

"Yeah...Um. We just decided we could catch up, that sort of thing." He said trying to sound casual.

"Oh yeah? What did you guys talk about?" Now Marcus sounded mad. Wrench felt his stomach flip hating that the other was upset with him. The two of them rarely ever fought or had actual disagreements, and it seemed that the few times they DID...it was always his fault. Why was he such a fuck up?

The clearing of a throat from Marcus brought him back to the present and two anxious slashes appeared as Wrench tried to think of what to say without saying too much.

"Well. Just how life has been for me since he's been locked up. Shit like that, nothing special. Whatever came to mind."

Marcus never wavered in his gaze and Wrench couldn't bring himself to look the other in the eyes. Once again he was happy for the protection his mask brought him. One never has to make eye contact if you've got a mask on, so it helped a great deal. But somehow Marcus always seemed to make direct eye contact with him and that made him antsy. He felt more nervous as a silence stretched between them for a minute or two as Marcus was clearly mulling over what to say. Wrench hoped for the best.

"Look man, I'm not going to tell you how to run your life. But...I dunno. I guess I was just really worried about you being over there this whole time by yourself. Surely, you understand why right?" Wrench nodded to him. He did, he really really did. Granted, he wasn't sure how he was gonna tell Marcus that he and Ryan are back together. But that's a challenge for another day.

"Just be safe, okay Wrench? I just don't want anything to happen to you. You know you mean a lot to me dude." He playfully punched at Wrench's arm, and got a nervous chuckle in return for his efforts. Wrench nodded again, and turned back to face the other.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry about that M. Hey, I can totally make it up to you if you want. I may or may not know someone who can pull some strings for us to get into the exhibit before they tear it all down. Maybe go tomorrow night?" If Wrench's heart skipped a beat at the way Marcus's face lit up, he didn't admit to it.

"Dude, that would be so dope. And then it would be like a VIP experience. Hell yeah, I'm down for that. Let's aim for tomorrow, and then maybe game tonight? I got the new Tekken a day early, so I am ready to have my ass handed to me."

Wrench playfully shooed the other away from the bench as he snickered. "Oh, by whom do you mean?" Marcus rolled his eyes as he made his way over to the couch to relax for a bit before his next mission. "You know who. I've literally never beaten you once Wrench. Don't play cute with me." He said with mock disdain.

Wrench faced him with happy carets before nodding. "But I can't help it, M. I'm naturally adorable and hazardous at the same time." He joked.

"Yeah, I can agree to the adorable part for sure."

Wrench froze. If he turned a nice shade of red at that rather slight flirtation, he didn't say anything about that either. And neither did Marcus, which was fine.

The two went on about their activities in silence until Marcus got up and left to handle some business for Ray. Wrench watched him leave with less than three signs flickering on his mask, before turning back to his work with a big sigh. He had promised Ryan they'd spend the next few days together, "rekindling" things, as the other put it. But he couldn't bail on Marcus --again. He felt anxiety prickle at his insides thinking of how he could cancel on Ryan, without upsetting him. Things have been fine so far between them, but Ryan will never not have a temper, and he couldn't lie and say he wasn't slightly intimidated by how big the other guy was. Prison bulked him up, that's for sure.

No. This was dumb. Things were supposed to be different now, weren't they? He'd just call him up, and just let him know that he forgot he already had plans with Marcus so they'd have to just reschedule. And it'll be fine, right?

He slipped away from the main area of HQ, slightly up the steps and hit Ryan's icon on his screen to speed dial him. A few clicks later and a gruff "Hello", met his ears.

"Hey. Did I wake you?"

"Kinda, but I've been sleeping all day so I should probably get up. What's up?"

"I won't be able to make it tonight or tomorrow. I totally forgot I already had plans to do to this exhibit thing with Marcus and I already bailed on him to hang with you so...I didn't want to seem like a dick, you know?"

Wrench held his breath as he waited for the other to say something.

"Oh okay, whatever. I'll just go to the gym tonight then and find something to do tomorrow night then. Have fun."

"Uh, cool. Then, uh, I guess I'll talk to you soon."

He hung up the call and stared at the screen for a second before letting out the breath he had been holding while trying to calm his rapid heart rate. He had been worried for nothing. He went back down to his bench and got back to work on his latest gun, putting all his worry aside, so that he'd be free to hang with Marcus that evening.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, a few miles away, a brand new iphone 8 shatters into multiple pieces as it was hurled unfairly across the room into a sturdy wall where it met an abrupt end. The perpetrator watched all the pieces hit the floor through a tunnel gaze of irate rage, when everything became clear. It's time to erase this problem altogether. The target?

Marcus Holloway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this took so long. Final exams blended into being on vacation and just...bah!! But I'm back and I'm on summer break so I have all the time in the world to regularly update this fic. I have ideas for how I want the fic to pan out, but now I have the time to put it into motion. Hope you guys are still interested in me finishing this fic <3 Sorry that this one was a bit short, but because of what I want the next chapter to be...I think it ended where it needed to. But next chapter is where the drama starts, so be ready!


	9. Red Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sexual tensions come to a head, and Marcus does what he's been wanting to for quite some time.

The sounds of upbeat music blared from green earbuds as Marcus made his way down the stairs that led to the main HQ for Dedsec. He removed them and opened his mouth to speak, before promptly closing his lips to form a frown. Wrench wasn't there, again. He couldn't put his finger on it, but it seemed that after their talk (and Wrench deciding to cancel on Ryan to spend time with the hipster), Wrench has been missing more and more these days. Whenever he questioned the other male about it, Wrench would find some way to steer the conversation away to something else. He did at one point admit that he was trying to keep the peace with Ryan. Marcus felt his insides burn with just the thought of those two being anywhere near each other, and he was starting to wonder how long Ryan felt he needed to "make things up" with Wrench. He had growing suspicions that something more was happening between them, but Wrench wouldn't do that. Or at least he hoped not. 

Marcus took up his usual spot on the couch and pulled out his laptop to begin looking over some collected (stolen) data from the other day when he heard footsteps. Expecting it to be Sitara, he didn't make a move to turn around. It wasn't until a pair of hands covered his eyes, that he knew it surely wasn't her. 

"Yo man. I was beginning to worry you weren't going to show today." He tried to keep the worried tone out of his voice. Wrench chuckled and removed his hands before plopping down next to Marcus.

"Yeah sorry about that, M. Uh...Ryan's been super clingy as of late. It's been tricky trying to make up excuses to be here." Wrench said offhandedly and didn't notice the look the other gave him. Marcus closed his laptop with a sigh, hoping to reason with his best friend.

"Look man. I know I keep bringing this up...but it's been weeks now. How much longer is he going to try to patch things up with you? You haven't been around much at all, and everyone has noticed by now. What's the deal?" He watched Wrench squirm and tried to swallow the bile that wanted to rise up at whatever Wrench was apparently keeping from him. 

Wrench was silent for a moment, before facing Marcus with a blank mask. "Marcus, I kinda have to say something to you and there's a high chance you're not going to care for it too much..." The anarchist wiped his sweaty palms on his ripped jeans. Fuck, he didn't want to do this. But he couldn't keep this from Marcus forever. While he knew he had to be honest with the other, he knew for a fact there was no chance the hipster would take this well. Brown eyes stared at him, waiting for the bomb to drop.

"So..." He scratched the back of his head, not even sure where to begin. 

Fuck it, just get right to the point. 

"Ryan and I are seeing each other...again." There, he said it.

He had closed his eyes as if waiting for an impending blow, or some sort of outburst from the other hacker. But none came. In fact, the other was totally silent. Which was probably scarier. He opened his eyes to see the other staring at him as if trying to process what he had just heard. Silence swept between them and Wrench was starting to wonder if the other had malfunctioned in some way. But before he could awkwardly break the silence, the other beat him to it. 

"Wrench, you're fucking with me right? Tell me you're joking." Marcus shook his head in disbelief as he spoke and looked at the other almost pleading with him to admit this was all some sort of prank. 

"I...Marcus." He wasn't sure what to say as Marcus got up with a frown and began to pack his things with more force than he ever had before. 

Wrench stood up, not expecting this reaction. 

"Marcus, don't be mad at me. Please." He flinced when Marcus turned to face him with darkened brown eyes. Few times had Marcus ever actually been upset with him, and his heart sank knowing this was his doing.

"Wrench, what are you even thinking?" He all but shouted as he flung his bag back onto the couch. Wrench wished he knew what to say to make Marcus understand. If he could only say something to make this situation go away, he would. But the words just didn't want to come. Marcus waited before turning away again to grab his bag, his mouth in a firm line.

"Wrench, I can't tell you what to do with your life. But I won't stand around and watch you allow him to destroy you." Marcus put his bag on his back and made his way around Wrench, not responding when Wrench called after him.

Wrench watched Marcus ascend the stairs and disappear from view. Nobody else, thankfully, was at HQ yet but the silence was deafening and Wrench felt the familiar twinge of loneliness prick away. He ignored the lump in his throat as he decided it was best to get to work on his latest invention. Marcus would come around eventually. 

Hopefully.

Not too much time had passed before the other members of dedsec arrived, and stationed themselves in their usual spots of the room. Wrench hoped that Sitara didn't know about earlier somehow because he couldn't deal with pissing TWO people off in one day. Well, make that three. He already had to tell Ryan for the billionth time that he absolutely couldn't miss work today. He was behind on finishing up some schematics for new guns for Marcus to use, and he was beginning to fall behind on some of the recent events as well. Unfortunately, Ryan is persistent when he wanted to be. Which was literally all the time apparently. He sighed when his phone vibrated for the 5th time since Marcus had stormed out. He never had his phone on vibrate but Ryan insisted so that they could keep in constant contact with each other.

Wrench never said that that sounded a bit controlling. He took his phone out and checked to see he had not only another text, but a missed call and voicemail. He chose to ignore the voicemail, not really sure he wanted to hear it. He opened up his messenger app to see what the other had texted him this time. He paled when he saw he had missed an entire series of messages.

12:34 pm "Hey, you still busy?"

12: 40 pm "You should just ditch work and come hang"

12:53 pm "Are you ignoring me???"

12:59 pm "You're with that Marcus guy aren't you? You never  
reply to my fucking texts when he's around :/"

1:01 pm "I swear to fucking God if you're ignoring me"

1:02 pm "ANSWER YOUR FUCKING PHONE"

The missed call and voicemail followed immediately after that last text, and Wrench could only imagine what it entailed. He swore quietly, wondering what he should do. He doubts calling NOW would really do him any good. Maybe if he texted the other? Worth a shot.

'Hey sorry. Got caught up doing errands and couldn't have my phone on vibrate. Shit with the Bratva. Didn't want to get shot :p' --Yeah go with the teasing approach, maybe that'll de-escalate the situation.

1:11 pm "You're fucked when you get home. You think you can  
just play me like that? You're fucking around with  
Marcus and I know it. ://"

Wrench scrambled to reply, his fingers quickly sliding across his touch screen to respond. 

'Wtf? Why would you even think that? I'm with you, remember? Marcus and I are friends, he's like my brother. Nothing is going on between us, you know me.'

1:13 pm "Oh, I know you wouldn't do that? You mean like the  
time you fucked that one guy behind my back???"

Wrench bit his lip, and had to refrain from lashing out. The urge to throw his phone across the room was incredibly strong. Ryan had never let him forget that he did that. But they weren't even together really, so how is that even considered being unfaithful? He needed to get this conversation under control.

'We were broken up at the time and you know it. I thought you said you were over it so why do you keep bringing it up? I thought we were trying to make this shit work..'

1:15 pm "Whatever. You wanna be a whore for his dick, fucking  
go for it. Don't bother coming over tonight"

Wrench slammed his fist into the table of the Wrench bench before holding back a shout of pain. He unclenched his fist and waved his hand about waiting for the warm heat of searing pain to fade. He sighed deeply as he put his phone back into his pocket and stared at what he was working on. Well, seems like both Marcus and Ryan wanted nothing to do with him right now. Fucking great. He flinched when he felt his phone vibrate once again. He took it out and was relieved to see it was Marcus this time.

1:18 pm: Hey, can we talk?? 

He knew the other couldn't stay mad at him too long. He needed to make things right with the hipster. Nothing else mattered more than that. He texted the other back immediately.

'Always. Where at?'

1:19 pm: Rooftop. I'm there now.

'Okay, brt'

He put his phone away and ran up the stairs and out of the game shop. He hoped that Marcus reaching out to him meant that he wasn't mad at him anymore. He couldn't stand the thought of their close relationship ending over this. Marcus was honestly all he had. Nobody else had ever been this close to him. The hipster understood him in a way nobody else ever had, and he wasn't about to let this all blow up in smoke. He made his way up to their usual rooftop that seemed to be reserved for personal conversations. He spotted Marcus not too far away, and be slowly made his way over.

Marcus turned when he heard footsteps and nodded at the other as Wrench sat down across from him. Marcus could feel the anxiety radiating from the tattooed hacker, and he felt bad for storming out the way he had. He knew that Wrench had a lot of issues with abandonment. The few friendships he had, even though he joked a lot, he took them seriously and is prone to being worried that people will walk out of his life--as they tended to do. Marcus knew he could never truly end things with Wrench, but he was honestly at a loss with the news the other dropped on him earlier. Now was the time for honesty, because he couldn't stand the thought of the other being hurt.

"Hey, thanks for coming" Wrench nodded in reply, his voice failing him at the moment. He wasn't sure where this conversation was headed and it made him nervous.

"So...I wanted to apologize for storming out earlier man. I got so riled up, and just bailed--and that's not cool. I guess I just didn't know how to process...what you told me." 

Wrench nodded again. "I know...and I'm sorry about that. I wanted to tell you sooner but..." He didn't want to admit that he was scared to tell Marcus. Not because of how Marcus would react, but because Ryan had told him to keep it a secret. Seems like he was always breaking promises nowadays. Marcus stood up and walked over to the railing before leaning against it. The sun was setting and the city had a peaceful aura to it. Wrench got up and joined him and the two just stared out into the city in a calm silence. 

After a moment, Marcus turned to face Wrench who was still staring out at their view. 

"Wrench, I'm worried about you. Scared for you, actually might be more accurate" He watched sad slashes appear on the others mask, but the anarchist didn't speak. 

"Can you at least tell me WHY? You deserve so much better. Why do you put yourself through this shit man?" 

Wrench sighed but doesn't turn to face the darker skinned male. 

"It's like I said before. Ryan and I have always...been tangled up with each other. That's just how it's always been." He looked down at his hands before looking back up again. 

"Besides, he's the only one who has ever tolerated how I look Marcus. That might not seem like much to you, but for me...that's a big deal. He accepts how I look, and I know he's got his issues. But I'm no angel either." 

"Wrench he's a fucking loose cannon!" 

"I fucking know that Marcus" He said through gritted teeth.

A silence falls over them again for a moment.

"You're wrong about that, Wrench."

Wrench turned to face him finally, but question marks lit up on his mask.

"He is not the only one who accepts how you look. Man, you showed me your face--remember? And I don't just tolerate how you look Wrench...."

Wrench didn't know how to respond to that, but his heart was racing all of a sudden. What was Marcus doing? He jumped when a dark hand gently laid across his that was still gripped on the rail before them. 

"Look. I don't want to make you uncomfortable, but if you think that he is the only one who could be attracted to you--you're wrong. I know you're hard on yourself about your face, but I honestly think about it all the time. Actually, I think about YOU all the time" 

Marcus chuckled and the nervousness was there. Wrench had a million thoughts racing through his head as he tried to process what the other was saying. He had dreamt of moments like this before and here he was actually in it. 

Marcus raised his other hand to lightly touch the bit of skin the mask didn't cover. It wasn't until now that Wrench found his voice again.

"Do you...do you want to see it? My face, I mean." 

Marcus looked over his mask and bit his lip. "Only if you want me to see you."

A shaky hand found its way to the clasp that held the mask in place. A soft click was heard and his mask went blank as he slowly took it off. Marcus watched him do so, but didn't say anything because he knew how hard it was for Wrench to show his face. Yet, there his face was--uncovered. Wrench let his arm lower to his side as he gripped the mask, already wanting to put it back on. He could feel Marcus looking over his face, but he couldn't meet the others gaze. 

Marcus took this rare chance to take in all of Wrench's facial features. When he had gotten the mask back for the engineer, Wrench had only shown him his face for a few seconds before retreating to the safety of his mask. But now, Wrench had given Marcus permission to fully explore and it felt so intimate that the hipster didn't want to waste it. He didn't understand why Wrench hated himself so damn much. While he was not the overly traditional standard of attractive, he was certainly still attractive. Maybe it was the unique qualities he possessed that made him so fascinating to the hipster. 

Wrench had pale skin, which made sense since he was rarely outside. But the skin looked smooth and unblemished. He had a hook nose, but it suited him. Small, thin and pink lips were set into a nervous frown. Marcus wondered if they were softer than they looked. He finally made his way to the large burn that took up a large portion of the left side of his face. He never asked Wrench how he got it because he knew that was a painful part of his past he wasn't ready to go into. He knew the burn was the large reason he wore a mask, but honestly it was badass--almost exotic the way it contrasted sharply with the milky white skin around it and the pale blue eye in its center. Wrench probably had the most gorgeous eyes Marcus had ever seen, and he wished the other would look at him right now. 

"Am I making you uncomfortable?"

Wrench shook his head.

"No...sorry. Just not used to having my face open like this, for this long. It makes me anxious" He mumbled, eyes still not meeting the other. 

"Wrench, can you look at me please?" 

White teeth gnawed at a pink lower lip, but Wrench slowly obliged and pale blue eyes met warm brown. Marcus raised his hand and it hovered near Wrench's face, waiting for permission. Wrench nodded and averted his gaze--not feeling comfortable keeping eye contact. Marcus slowly laid his hand gently on the side of Wrench's face that wasn't burned. He didn't want to overwhelm the other already nervous hacker.

"You sure you're okay?" He really didn't want to make Wrench feel uncomfortable. Well, more than the usual discomfort of being unmasked.

"No. I'm fine. It's just...he never looks at me like that."

Black eyebrows furrowed. He knew the other meant Ryan, but he wasn't sure what Wrench meant.

"In what way?"

"I don't know...he just. He just doesn't look at me the way you do..." Wrench took a step back, feeling anxious from all the face touching but doesn't put his mask back on just yet. 

"I'm sorry." Though Wrench knows he doesn't need to apologize. Marcus understands. He always does.

"It's okay. Just showing me your face was a gift enough. But the reason he doesn't look at you like that is because he doesn't want you the way that I do." 

There, he finally said it. After what feels like an eternity of beating around the bush through playful sexual banter, he finally put it out there. But it might be for nothing, and Marcus was suddenly not feeling his usual confident self. Wrench was technically taken. What lines would he have to cross to have Wrench? Was he willing to cross them? Part of him knew the answer, and that scared him. 

Wrench had nearly dropped his mask at the near confession. His mind was yelling at him to kiss Marcus. 

'Tell him how you feel, idiot.' He berated himself. 

"You...want ME?" The thought seemed crazy to him. Yeah, they flirted, but he figured it was because they were so close and both comfortable with their sexuality. Marcus was a casanova, why on earth would he want someone like Wrench? 

 

"I've wanted to make you mine since I got here, Wrench" Marcus all but whispered, but his voice remaied steady.

Wrench turned away to face the open view before them, not sure what to even do at this point. He took his phone out and frowned. He had tried to text Ryan, hoping to patch things up. But he was only met with silence. The other was shunning him, and the more he thought about it--the less he wanted to deal. 

"Then why don't you?"

"Wait, what did you just say?"

Marcus had already started to grab his things, thinking Wrench didn't want anything to do with him--so Wrench's comment felt totally out of the blue. Did he hear him right?

"I said: then. why. don't. you." He said plainly, now facing the other openly--blue eyes drilling into brown and Marcus felt like he was ready to drown. He fumbled with his bag before just dropping it all together and pulling Wrench towards him. Wrench's eyes fluttered closed when he felt a strong arm around his small waist, as the two drew close together. 

Marcus hesitated. This was wrong, wasn't it? 

Wrench apparently wasn't in as much doubt as he pulled Marcus towards him, bridging the gap between their lips. It took a second for Marcus to relax, but there was no way he could resist with Wrench's warm body pressed up against his. He had thought about what it was like to kiss the engineer, and yet the real thing was better than anything he had imagined. He lightly bit on Wrench's lower lip, which emitted a sigh from the other. Their lips molded perfectly. And yes, Wrench's lips were much softer than they looked. 

Wrench playfully nipped as their kisses grew needier. All thought of Ryan fueled his actions as he pressed more against the hipster who squeezed at his slim hips. Wrench pressed back against the rail, pulling Marcus up against him--who let himself be guided. Marcus wanted to say something as they broke apart, but only managed to press his face in the crook of the others neck. This was the time for reason to kick in, but it was really difficult when he considered he was A) hard as all fuck right now and B) had Wrench clinging to him like seran wrap. The thoughts of what he would love to do to Wrench right now, was also not helping. He sighed, hating the rational side of himself, before he pulled away from the other. Wrench looked at him with a weird mix of arousal and confusion.

"Wrench, we shouldn't be doing this. I mean if you're with Ryan...he already has it out for me. I don't think this is a good idea right now."

"Oh..." Wrench looked away, feeling crestfallen and a mix of a bunch of other emotions at once.

"Hey now." Marcus said gently as he tilted Wrench's chin to make the other look at him. "I just want to do this right...let's just, take things slow until we get it all figured out." Not that he knew what that even meant. He literally just helped Wrench cheat on his boyfriend. But it was Ryan, who is probably thinking of ways to throw Wrench around--so fuck him. But he still felt guilty. But Wrench was staring at him with wide eyes and pouty lips. How could he just say no to that? 

Wrench nodded, understanding. He leaned forward to kiss Marcus once more before putting his mask back on. It flickered through a few emotions before settling to his default X's. He watched Marcus gather his things and felt his phone buzz. He took it out and felt his heart thud as he saw it was Ryan trying to call him. He quickly hit ignore and tried to ignore the dizziness he felt about all of this. Him and Ryan were still together, and he still thought they'd try to make it work. But...now THIS was happening.

Marcus turned to face him with a warm smile, and Wrench almost wanted to vomit.

What the fuck did he get himself into?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here you go! A longer and more eventful chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this. More drama will arise within the next chapter and onward. See you guys in the next one! <3


	10. The Flame(Is Gone)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins.

Wrench sighed as Ryan rolled off of him with a loud grunt before zipping his pants back up. The two laid on their respective sides of the bed with their backs facing each other. Wrench had thought he missed intimacy that wasn't random hookups that he had been engaging in the past few years. But honestly, sex with Ryan felt no different—he might as well have been a stranger himself. An uncomfortable silence spread throughout the room until the sounding of buzzing could be heard coming from the small table inches from his head. He leaned over to unlock his phone and he bit into his lip at the text that greeted him. 

'Are we going to talk about what happened?' 

It was clearly Marcus, and he clearly meant about the kiss from the other day. He had made it a point to not be too available since it happened. For one, Ryan would not stop pestering him about them hanging out—so naturally he had to oblige to keep the other satisfied and unaware. Second, he honestly had no idea what to do about the situation he had put himself in. He couldn't lie and say that part of him wanted to just tell Ryan to take a hike so he could just be with Marcus. That kiss weighed heavily on his mind at all times of the way, and it was to the point that he often dreamt about them in more...compromising situations. Even when he and Ryan were having sex, he found his mind wondering how it would feel it if was Marcus instead. His thoughts were always on Marcus, and it was becoming a distraction. He knew he was a bit wrong for avoiding the hipster, who honestly had innocent intentions, but he needed to figure out what he was going to do. Besides, after pinning after Marcus ever since the hipster joined Dedsec—he was going to need some time to ingest the fact that the other returned his feelings. That had to be fair, right? 

Wrench sighed heavily, realizing that he hadn't yet replied back to the text. He honestly didn't know what to say, or if he was ready to talk about..."it", just yet. But he couldn't leave the other hanging. 

'Yeah. Sorry, just needed to get my head together.' 

Seconds later his phone buzzed, but a large hand appeared from behind him to snatch the phone away. 

"Hey, what the fuck are you doing?" Wrench whirled around and reached to grab his phone back but two bulky hands pushed him down into the mattress. Ryan straddled him, using his full weight to keep the anarchist down as his eyes read over the text that was open on the screen. There was nothing immediately bothersome about the text, but as Ryan scrolled back up to the previous texts he could feel his heart rate shoot through the roof. With a frustrated yell, Ryan slams the cellphone into the wall next to them. He ignored the startled yelp that came from the male pinned underneath him, as he wrapped his hands around Wrench's slender neck. Blue eyes grew wide and tattooed hands reached up to attempt, with no success, to pry the squeezing hands off him. Wrench sputtered and tried to wiggle free, but found the other too heavy to move. 

"Did something happen between you and Marcus?" 

It didn't take Wrench long to recognize the quiet rage that simmered in the other's voice. He quickly stretched an arm out to try to grab at the lamp on the bedside table his phone had been laying on, in hopes of maybe clocking Ryan with it. But sadly it was just out of reach. Ryan ignored his reaching and tightened his squeeze which got Wrench's attention as he squacked. 

"I FUCKING ASKED YOU A QUESTION REGGIE." Wrench would have snapped at him for using his real name, but the lack of oxygen was more of a pressing concern. He shut his eyes tight, and a few tears escaped and rolled down his cheeks that were turning an unhealthy shade of blue. He tried to get some air into his lungs, but found he couldn't get enough. Blue eyes slowly opened as he looked up and towards Ryan, wide and wet from fear as he slowly shook his head. It was a lie, but he didn't want to think of what the other would do if he had told him about the kiss. Ryan stared down at him before releasing his hold on the others neck, and quickly flipping Wrench over to his stomach and holding his face down into his pillow. Wrench tried to thrash around but found himself unable to remove the heavy male once again. He felt Ryan fidgeting behind him, and eyes widened when he heard the sound of a zipper being pulled down. He yelled obscenities as Ryan pushed him into, without lube like they had earlier that night, but the pillow smothered whatever he was yelling. Ryan held him down and grunted as he pushed himself all the way in before deeply thrusting into the male below. 

Wrench's mind was rolling through a thousand thoughts a minute as he tried to comprehend what was happening. Was this rape? Ryan had to know he didn't want this. He tried to turn his head to yell at the other to stop, but couldn't with the other hand holding him facedown into the pillow beneath him. Upon seeing Wrench's body go slack, Ryan picked up the pace as he fucked the other with earnest. Wrench squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the pleasured sounds coming from the one on top of him. 

'This isn't happening, this isn't happening, this isn't-' Wrench's mind was on repeat until he felt the other slow down, and heard the other grunt—a telltale sign that he had came. The hand that was pressing on his hand disappeared, but Ryan himself didn't move just yet. He felt Ryans warm breathe on his ear and it ran a chill down his spine. The smell of beer met his nose as he turned his head to the side to get some much needed oxygen. 

"You better not be lying because I'll find out. I swear to fuck, I'll find out. And if that happens I swear I'll kill you. You hear me? I'll kill Marcus, and then I'll kill you. You stay away from him. If it isn't about work, you come right home. Marcus doesn't want you. Nobody wants you. You're nothing special Reggie. You belong to me. Remember that. Do you understand me?" 

Wrench nodded gravely but flinched when he felt Ryan gently run fingers through his ash blond hair. Ryan huffed in satisfaction before getting off him and getting back into bed. Wrench didn't move for a long while, afraid of possibly setting the other off. It wasn't until loud snores echoed through the room, did he know it was safe. He slowly turned to his side, and gingerly sit up. He quietly gasped for air, hands gripping the sheets beneath him to keep them from shaking. When the room stopped spinning, he made his way to the bathroom as if on auto-pilot. The door closed and was locked quietly so as not to wake the sleeping male in the other room. Wrench found himself in the bathroom alone as he slowly turned to face the mirror. Bright red handprints were very vivid on his fair skin, and he knew it was going to bruise terribly. How was he going to cover this up? How was he going to go to work tomorrow as if none of this even happened? What would he say to Marcus? Having no immediate answers, he turned and got into the shower after removing his clothes—body aching from the assault he just dealt with. He sank into the tub, ignoring the semen leaking from his ass, and turned the shower on. 

Wrench curled up , drawing his knees to his chest as hot water pelted him and steamed filled the room. He held himself as if hoping to disappear into the steam altogether. Wrench sat there for a moment in total silence, replaying the scenario in his mind over and over like a broken record. It wasn't until the realization of what had just happened to him hit him, did a muffled cry of anguish rip from his lips. Tears mixed and mingled with the hot water pouring down his body, and he could only hope that the scalding water could wash everything away. Maybe he could come out of it not feeling as broken. But as he sobbed into his knees, and blood pooled in the tub, he realized that that's exactly what he was. 

Broken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry. >>...


	11. Life and Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The calm before the storm.

Ryan never brought up last night when they both parted from his apartment the next day. It was almost as if it had never happened. Wrench wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing, but he was okay with not bringing it up. Maybe if he pretended hard enough, he could forget too. The pain in his backside spoke otherwise however, and he found himself unsure. One of his best traits was his ability to only show people what he wanted them to see. The mask made it pretty easy, but it helped that he could put up appearances pretty well. Most of the people who knew him, saw him as a happy-go-lucky type of person who could bounce back from anything.

If only they really knew.

Wrench sighed as he neared the game shop. Things had become increasingly complicated. He knew for a fact Marcus had likely tried to text or call him more last night. But now his phone was broken for the moment, and he wasn't sure what kind of state of dismay the other may be in at this point. Knowing Marcus, the hipster was thinking the worst had happened to the now suddenly AWOL engineer-- and he'd be right. But Wrench couldn't tell him that. He couldn't tell him _anything_ about recent events. There's zero way Marcus wouldn't go on a murderous warpath if he knew that Ryan had...

Wrench shuddered and tried his best to let those thoughts fade from his head. But with him and Marcus being "something", he wasn't sure how he could avoid the subject forever. Marcus seemed really insistent on the other figuring out what he wanted. Basically to make a choice. It freaked the tattooed man out. And yet, didn't he owe Marcus that much? The other has been willing to play the role as "the other man", despite feeling less than stellar about it. So, he probably had the right to know which way Wrench was going to go. The problem was: Wrench had no fucking idea what he was doing either. And he didn't have any immediate answers for his best friend now semi-secret lover. Regardless, he would have to give Marcus an explanation sooner or later. As he descended the stairs down into HQ, he got the sinking feeling that he may need to explain himself much sooner than he thought.

Marcus had been there presumably waiting for him to show up. Upon hearing footsteps, the hipster had turned to peek to see who was coming down. Brown eyes were muddled with a variety of emotions Wrench couldn't pick out, and he had half a mind to just bolt back up the stairs. But then the other would know something was wrong, and he didn't want to get Marcus involved in his mess. So he ignored his heart hammering in his chest, and descended the last few steps-- stepping into HQ and making his way to his bench but not before giving the other a quiet (and rather lousy sounding) greeting. As soon as he made it to his trusty work bench, Marcus was beside him immediately.

"Man. what happened to you this weekend? We were texting, and then you just went off the grid. What gives? Did I do something?" Wrench almost wanted to laugh because the idea that this entire fiasco was at all because of the other man was ridiculous. No, this was his fucking up-- as usual. Equal signs flashed on his mask as he hoped his excuse would be somewhat plausible.

"No, no. Sorry, M. This weekend was kinda nuts. Also my phone is broken as shit, so I actually couldn't use it. Still can't until I get another one." He pulled out the indeed broken phone and held it out for the other to witness. Marcus peered at it before raising an eyebrow. "Aww man. Don't tell me you went out drinking without me." He said with mock disdain before lightly punching Wrench in the shoulder. Wrench would have been off the hook, since the other seemed to buy his excuse, until he flinched feeling the other's fist hit his arm. He had forgotten that Ryan had held his arms down so roughly...

Marcus recoiled away from him, as if struck, when Wrench himself flinched. A barely audible hiss escaped him and the anarchist turned his head away to go back to "work". Unfortunately, he had the other's full and undivided attention. Wrench was acting weird and Marcus had a sneaking suspicion why.

"Who did you go out with anyway? It's not like you to not drunk dial me, man." Wrench faltered, not expecting the inquiry but went back to what he was working on.

"Nobody special. Just went out alone. I needed to just be by myself. That's all. We can do something tonight if you want." He hoped that would appease the hipster who was now staring a hole into his head.

"You're lying to me man. I can always tell. Did you and RYAN go out?"

Wrench frowned and two equal signs flashed on his mask. "No, we didn't even go anywhere M."

"Oh, but you DID hang with him though right?"

Fuck. "No, that isn't what I meant." But he sounded unsure just enough to give Marcus the real answer. Why wasn't he able to lie to Marcus like he could to everyone else? Marcus shoved the stuff Wrench was trying to distract himself with further up the bench, and turned the other male to face him.

"Wrench, are we EVER going to talk about things? I mean, I've tried to be okay with you pseudo-seeing the both of us. But I can't handle not knowing if he's hurting you. I can't keep doing this, man. I'm not trying to pressure you but --"

"But that's exactly what you're doing. The both of you." Wrench snapped, but deflated immediately feeling bad for it. Marcus stared at him with sad eyes before looking down at his hands.

"Earlier when I touched you, you flinched....Why?" He looked back up and kept his hold on Wrench's wrist, when the anarchist tried to turn away from him. "WHY, wrench?"

Wrench could feel his resolve crumbling the more Marcus stared at him, demanding an answer. A truthful one at that. It was always so easy to run away from his problems, or lie his way out of Sitara's inquiries. None of the other Dedsec members were ever pushy about the matter, so he never had to keep up appearances much. But Marcus was different, and he just wasn't sure how to deal with someone who cared that much for him. He wasn't sure if he even deserved it. Moments of last night flashed into his head briefly and he wondered if that was all there was. The hand on his wrist loosened a bit, and Marcus ran a thumb over the back of his hand as if to soothe his nerves.

Maybe there was more for him.

Wrench sighed, going lax. "I'm sorry." He said quietly, not exactly sure what particular thing he was apologizing for. Maybe all of it. Marcus looked at him confused as well before moving them both to the couch. Wrench didn't offer any resistance. He gingerly sat down , but avoided facing the other youth.

"Sorry for what, Wrench? You're not the one who is hurting people. He is."

"Aren't I, though?" Wrench asked quietly. "I'm hurting _you_ "

Marcus gently put his hand on Wrench's knee and gave it a supporting squeeze.

"No you're not. You're going through a lot of shit, man. And ryan isn't helping. Just tell me what's going on, and i'll help you. I'll keep you safe." And he would. He'd protect Wrench to the death, if he had to.

Wrench knew this too. He wanted to just blurt it out, and tell Marcus everything but he didn't have the words. If he said it out loud, he might as well dig his own grave. Marcus was strong, but Ryan was crazy. He didn't want his best friend to get hurt, especially because of him. But his silence seemed to be giving the other the answers he needed anyway. Marcus removed his hand and placed it on Wrench's shoulder.

"You can tell me. He isn't here, and I promise I won't let him anywhere NEAR you. But you have to let me know what's happening. Did he hurt you? Is that what's going on?"

A beat of silence went through the room. Wrench sighed as he turned his head a little bit towards the other and lightly nodded his head. "But it isn't like before, M. I know that doesn't make sense but it's true." He wasn't sure who he was trying to convince. Though, Marcus wasn't buying it.

"It doesn't matter, Wrench. That son of a bitch isn't going to change. You HAVE to see that, man."

"It isn't even that bad--"

"It. does. not. matter." Marcus stressed every word as he got up and kneeled in front of the other.

"Wrench this has to stop now. No, this IS stopping. Right now. You can't be around him anymore. I know he wants to make things up to you, but this has gone on long enough. You don't have to be with me, but you can't be with him either. Please promise me."

He raised his hands up and hovered near Wrench's face, waiting for the other's approval. Wrench simply nodded, knowing the rest of Dedsec wouldn't be around anytime soon. Marcus slowly removed the mask, and smiled gently though Wrench refused to make direct eye contact with him. They'd work on that. He raised his free hand to brush some of Wrench's bangs away before putting his hand back down.

"Promise me." He said again, though his voice stayed gentle.

"It isn't that simple, M. Even if I DID promise...you don't know Ryan like I do. He'll find a way to get here. He always does." Wrench had never felt so trapped in his life. Not even when the FBI had caught him that one time. He felt like open prey even when Ryan wasn't around. The other had a grip on him, how could Marcus really do anything?

"Fuck that, and fuck him. If he wants to get to you, he'll have to literally go through me to do it. He will _never_ hurt you again. You have my word, Wrench. But I can't protect you if you keep hanging with him."

"I know." Wrench whispered, feeling drained. He rubbed his face with his hands before mumbling into his palms. Marcus raised an eyebrow before nudging the other hacker. "Sorry man, I don't speak mumble. You'll have to try that again for me."

Wrench didn't chuckle at the obvious attempt to lighten the mood.

"I said: so what do we do now? I mean...about us." Blue eyes briefly met brown, before quickly skittering away. Marcus rubbed his chin. He hadn't didn't have a plan for that particular situation. He reached out again to hold Wrench's pale hand.

"We do whatever you want us to do. I mean, you know how I feel about you."

"But I'm fucked up, M. You could have literally anyone you wanted." Wrench didn't understand.

Marcus chuckled in amusement. "Dude you're not fucked up. You do crazy shit, but you're not fucked up. And that may be true, but out of everyone-- you're the one I like. You're the one I want. It's that simple, Wrench. If you let it be." The sincerity from Marcus resonated with the tattooed hacker, and he felt himself flush. Marcus noticed and smiled warmly as Wrench slowly turned to face him. Marcus lit up seeing the other's full face, and he lightly stroked the other's cheek. He wished Wrench could see how gorgeous he was. Or at least believe him if he told him. Maybe in due time.

"So what do we do about...you know." Wrench meant the Ryan dilemma.

"I'll handle that, you've suffered enough."

Wrench scoffed. If only Marcus knew the half of it. But he couldn't tell the hipster that Ryan... _forced_ himself on him. At least not until things were handled. No need to add fuel to the fire. Marcus handed Wrench his mask back, and the other put it on before turning back with blinking question marks.

"But some of my stuff is at his place. How will I get it back?"

Marcus frowned before getting up and putting his hoodie back on. "I'll either go, or we both go when he isn't home." Wrench nodded before rising himself. It was a decent plan at least.

"He knows where my garage is though, where will I stay at in the mean time?" Marcus pulled the thin hacker close before pulling his mask up enough to plant a quick kiss on Wrench's lips.

"My place. That's the one place he doesn't have the address to. And he wouldn't dare step to me at my crib." It would be the last thing he ever did, that's for damn sure. "Sitara doesn't need me for anything today really, so why don't we just go there and relax for the day? I'm sure you could use the downtime." He offered.

Wrench pulled his mask back down before nodding in agreement and the two left the hackerspace hand-in-hand. The two chatted in their usual fashion as they made their way to where Marcus lived. But unbeknownst to Wrench, Marcus was planning his next move. He may not know exactly the details of what Ryan has done, but he knew the other is guilty of at least some sort of physical abuse. He wasn't gonna let that shit continue. So once he gets the chance to slip out of his place tonight, he was gonna pay Ryan a little visit.

They had some talking to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SOOO SOOO SOOOO sorry for taking so long. I hope it was worth it. Now that things are more settled I can go back to regularly updating. Sorry it wasn't super long, but I didn't want to start going into what will be the next chapter. <3


	12. Black Sandy Beaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The confrontation we've been waiting for.

Footsteps quietly trekked across a vibrant green lawn, as Marcus made his way to the front porch of what was apparently the house Ryan owned. It was a really nice place, and the thought that someone like Ryan could own something so fancy made bile bubble in his gut. Well, he may own a nice house but he definitely wasn't going to continue to own Wrench. That shit ends tonight. After a long night of cuddling and movie watching, Wrench eventually passed out which gave Marcus the opportunity to slip out of the apartment undetected. There was no way the other hacker would have given the green light for what was about to go down. Most times Marcus was the type to attack from a distance, it was his way as a hacktivist. 

But no. Not tonight.

Ryan needed to be sent a message. A message Marcus intended to send with his fists. He, of course, came armed just in case. But he didn't intend for it to come to that. He just wanted to have it just in case things got crazy. Or at least hopefully to scare Ryan shitless in hopes he'll take a fucking hint. 

Inside, Ryan was sprawled against the couch watching television when he heard a small creak. He shot up in alarm but then laid back down. It was probably just the house settling. He shook his head at himself before going back to his show. 

"He dies at the end." A voice spoke.

Ryan shot up off the couch and spun around to come face-to-face with a brown fist. The hit connected square into his nose, with enough force behind it to send him falling backwards only to trip over and land on top of the coffee table. Marcus stepped around the couch, picked up the remote and hit a button to turn off the television. He tossed it over his shoulder as Ryan started to get his bearings and maneuver to get up. He didn't get very far as another fist reached him, knocking him back down. He rolled off of the table and peeked at his assailant. Brown eyes widened in realization when Marcus came into full view, before simmering in rage. Marcus, however, was unaffected. He had turned to close and lock the door he had come in through before moving to where Ryan could see him.

"You know. I tolerated your presence up until now only because Wrench wanted to give you a second chance for some reason. But you've exhausted those chances, so I'm here to let you know that Wrench doesn't want anything more to do with you." 

Ryan gave Marcus a long stare before chuckling. He stood up and wiped the glob of blood that had been pooling over his upper lip. He looked down at the blood stain that was now in his carpet and then back up at the blazing brown eyes that seemed endless.

"Is that right? What's your name again, kid?" He took a step forward, but Marcus didn't back up.

"That's really nothing you need to remember, because you won't be seeing much of me OR Wrench again."

"And who exactly is going to make me?"

"You see me standing here, don't you?"

Ryan scowled before wiping his nose once more, and moving again closer to the hacker. Marcus to his credit, stood his ground before speaking again.

"Look. I'm giving you an out, man. You might be crazy, but you're not dumb enough to ignore a direct threat. No, a direct PROMISE. Whatever it was that was going on between you and Wrench, is over. Finished. You feel me? I don't want you even so much as thinking about him, much less contacting him. That's from the both of us."

"If that were true, he would have come to me himself."

Marcus laughed. "What? So you can hit him again? I came here so he wouldn't have to. But trust me, he's no longer interested. So I suggest you become uninterested too before I dismantle the rest of your face. I really hope I don't have to come back here again." He left it at that, and turned to leave. 

"We fucked that night." 

Marcus turned his head so fast that it nearly snapped.

"Excuse me?"

"That night you were calling him? Know how his phone is broken? I'm sure he came crying to you about it. Yeah, we fucked that night."

Marcus was still for a second. "Wrench never --"

"Never said anything? That doesn't surprise me. You don't see what he's doing? He's playing the game. He's playing YOU, my dude. You don't see that?"

Marcus frowned before shaking his head. "You're full of shit man." Ryan shrugged and a faint smirk made it's way across his features.

"Maybe. But after you two are done playing house, whose bed do you think he comes crawling into afterwards? Just think about that. Even when he doesn't WANT it, he still lets me have it."

"Man, fuck you." Marcus rolled his eyes and turned to leave again before a thought struck him. He backed up and turned back to face the other man who was in the process of trying to plug up his nose with tissues.

"Wait. What do you mean when he doesn't want it?" That just didn't sound right. Ryan covered his nose with the sleeve of his shirt, muffling him a bit but the shit-eating grin was still clear as day.

"I'm the kind of guy who takes what he wants. And as far as I see it, if Wrench doesn't fight back then he might as well be saying yes." Another shrug followed. Marcus clenched and unclenched his hands. 

"Humor me. That night you two had sex the other day. Did he tell you to stop?"

Ryan waved his hand in a dismissive fashion. "What difference does that make? He fucking belongs to me, that's what you don't seem to get. But since you asked, yeah I guess he said he didn't want it. But it's hard to really care when he's slobbering over my cock." He opened up his mouth to speak again but a deep roar from Marcus interrupted him. 

Marcus charged at him, sending them both crashing into the flat screen television and through the glass entertainment system that it rested on. Ryan howled as glass dug into his backside, which was cut off by Marcus punching him in the mouth. Marcus cocked his fist back to send another one down, but Ryan shot up to headbutt him in the face. The hacker fell over with a groan and held onto his now throbbing forehead as the sound of Ryan standing up reaches his ears. A swift kick made connected with with his stomach, and a series began to follow.

"Is this worth it marcuuuuuus?" Ryan sang as he continued to kick Marcus. A hand reached up to block the next kick and pushed at Ryan's foot to push him further away. That gave him enough time to tackle Ryan again and push him back with as much force as he could -- enough force to send them into the massive fish tank nearby. The fish tank swayed before falling over on the both of them, sending glass, water and fish everywhere. Marcus was the first to get up and began to pick one of the small glass shards that had lodged itself into his arm. Thankfully, he didn't catch the worst of it. Ryan eventually got up onto his knees and began to crawl away, glass embedding into his hands and knees as he went. Marcus grabbed the back of his shirt to halt his escape, before putting the other male into a tight choke hold.

"You're fucking lucky I'm not the type to kill over something like this because I swear to god you don't deserve mercy right now." Both of their bodies rocked as Ryan tried to break the choke hold he was in -- but Marcus didn't loosen his grip. If anything, he tightened it further. Ryan turned his head just enough to spit which nearly landed on Marcus's arm, but missed. 

"Then fucking do it." Ryan growled out through grit teeth. The pressure from the choke hold was making him light headed and unfocused. "You wouldn't dare because you and I both know Wrench would never forgive you for it." The victorious sound in the man's voice was enough to make Marcus vomit. He knew the other man was right, and while that pissed him off on another level, it didn't matter. That wasn't what he came here for to begin with. He loosened his hold before pushing Ryan forward, and getting up himself. He was surprised at how fast the other moved as a vase came flying at his head. Marcus ducked and thunderballed the stockier man in the face, which sent him down immediately. Silence rang through the room with the exception of heaving breathing on both of their parts. Neither moved for a second. Ryan coughed and some blood tricked down his chin as he squinted at Marcus who was limping towards the door he had came in from. 

The hacker turned halfway to face Ryan again who was still on the floor groaning. 

"Leave Wrench alone. This is the last time I'll say it. Don't come near him, don't call him, don't even say his fucking name. Or I'll be back, with backup."

He grimaced as he turned and exited the house when he could tell Ryan wouldn't be following him. He leaned against the banister trying to collect himself before making a slow trek towards the street. He commandeered a vehicle and quickly sped back towards his apartment. He replayed the events of the last 20 minutes back in his head and his hands clenched the steering wheel. If what Ryan was saying was true, then Wrench had basically been raped. What was worse was that this had happened and Wrench didn't even tell him. Did he even plan on telling him? Marcus ditched the car a few blocks from his place and walked the rest of the way. He leaned against the door as he fiddled with the key, his hands shaking from the adrenaline that hadn't worn off just yet. He managed to successfully enter his apartment and was met with silence and darkness. Wrench probably got up and went to bed, which was good. He had blood all over him, both his own and Ryan's. He didn't want Wrench to see that, so he'd need to change into clean clothing. 

Marcus stumbled into the living room and felt around for the light switch. He turned it on and was startled at Wrench sitting on the couch -- fully awake. Cyan eyes bore into guilty brown.

"Where ya been, M?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long to get out. I had been so busy with school, and then finishing school...and then graduation and work. x_x I had most of this and part of the next chapter done for awhile but yeah...life. lol Anyway. I want to finish up the next chapter tomorrow and have it up then. Now that I'm free from school, I actually can do weekly updates like I have been wanting to. This fic is NOT dead. Things have just been super hectic. Anyway, hope you guys liked this and expect the next one tomorrow!
> 
> <3


	13. End of the Line

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marcus is tired. Ryan gets a visitor (again), and Wrench says what he needs to say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. Super duper sorry for taking a million years to update this fic. I have not and do not intend to abandon it. I want to finish this properly (and timely, more than I have been) and move on to future fics I have ideas for. Oh! Thank you to Meadonroe for giving me a nudge about updating AND being a lovely editor for this fic. <3 <3 Anyway, I hope you guys like this. Expect more timely updates. If I start slacking, yell at me. 
> 
> Seriously lol

There were few times Marcus ever felt his blood run cold, and not once did he ever think that his favorite anarchist would be the primary cause. Said anarchist was sitting on the couch, body taut like a bow string – arms crossed and eyes boring into his. For a second, Marcus felt the overwhelming urge to come up with an excuse for his absence. But that urge was quickly replaced by anger and a bit of disbelief when he replayed the nights events back in his hand. He had literally went over to Ryan’s house on Wrench’s behalf, to protect him and finally put all this nonsense behind him. He didn’t have anything to feel guilty over, nor would he apologize. Instead, he chose to say nothing as he gingerly shed his coat from his sore body – turning from the other to put it on the coat rack in the corner of the room.

“You went to see him, didn’t you?” It was more of a statement than a question, and Marcus for once just didn’t have the desire to engage in conversation with the other male. There was so much swimming around in his head, and the knowledge that Wrench had been sexually assaulted lingered like a bad taste.

‘No. Call it what it is. Rape, it was rape’. The thought had been sitting in the back of his head like a match waiting to be lit, but Marcus wasn’t sure if he could breach that topic just yet. He wasn’t even sure how to, and tonight really isn’t the night for that. But by the way Wrench stared coldly at him from across the room, it seemed as if the other wasn’t going to let any of this go.

Marcus turned back to face him, exhaustion coming off in waves and regarded Wrench with a long look.

“I mean, what do you want me to say Wrench? You already know if you even have to ask.” 

Wrench got up, frustrated – hands swinging as he spoke.

“Fuck! Marcus, I thought you said you’d let ME handle this. What the fuck were you thinking of going over to his place alone? And for what? This is between Ryan and I. Nobody asked for your help.” 

Marcus felt the slap of the words more than he heard them, and words were tumbling out of his mouth faster than he could stop them.

“Yeah, because you’re doing such a great job of keeping him straight, Wrench. What was I supposed to do? Just sit back and let him keep hurting you?” 

Why was Wrench mad at him anyway? Yeah, he didn’t tell the other his intentions – but his heart was in the right place. He just wasn’t about to let Wrench continue to be in what was an obviously toxic relationship. This whole “redemption” bullshit Ryan was trying to spin was a ploy to get into the others good graces and keep him close. 

“I thought we were going to go over to get my shit, together. Not – not you go off on some kind of crusade to avenge me.” Blue eyes scanned over his body and then widened, as if he was really seeing Marcus for the first time since he came back home. “Did you two fucking fight?” Marcus had all but forgotten his dishevelled appearance. That, and the dried blood that splattered the bottom of his jeans. He couldn’t say for sure if the blood was his or not. Not that it mattered, he had done what needed to be done – and Wrench would be safe because of it. He wasn’t going to explain himself, not even to Wrench himself. 

“Yes Wrench, we fought. I told him to stay away from you and he didn’t take kindly to it. Are we done? Because there’s a hot shower and bed with my name on it. We can talk about this tomorrow.” He said, his tone final as he made his way across the room – already over this entire scenario. Wrench moved and was quickly in front of the darker male, his body blocking the only way out of the living room. Marcus scowled at him initially but then willed himself to keep calm. 

“No, we’re not fucking done. You can’t just…fucking do that shit without telling me! I know what we talked about the other day, but I wanted to get away from him. Not you…kick the shit out of him. That wasn’t your fight to have.” He sounded offended. Betrayed, even. 

Something about that set Marcus off.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Wrench?” Dark hands flew up in the air in frustration for a second before falling back down. “I honestly don’t even know what you want from me. I did what you should have done forever ago. If I didn’t stop him, would you ever have? Because from what it looks like, you don’t know how to be anything BUT his punching bag.” He shoved his way past Wrench, who had grown quiet.

“I’m not going to apologize for doing what I did. I did it to protect you because I care about you. If you can’t see that, then I don’t know what I can say that will help you. But right now I’m going to bed, I suggest you do the same. We’ll talk in the morning.” He continued down the hallway, not looking back – leaving Wrench in the living room with nothing but his own thoughts.

Wrench remained where he stood for a bit, unable to will his body to move. After a few moments, he slowly sat down – staring ahead but not really looking at anything in particular. Marcus’s words had stung. The more he replayed them in his head, the more they hurt. And he knew they were true, which made it worse. They had never really fought before. Maybe they’d have a disagreement every now and again, but this was the first time they had ever actually gone at each other like that. But then again, Wrench always brought out the worst in people. The thought made his stomach churn and he looked at his phone, wondering if it was worth trying to go to bed at this point. If he did, he surely wouldn’t feel comfortable sleeping in the bed with Marcus. His decision making was cut-short when his phone vibrated, screen turning on to show a text message. 

From Ryan.

Wrench stiffened, feeling his heart begin to race a little bit. He didn’t dare open it up just yet, fearing what was inside. It wasn’t like HE sent Marcus over to handle things, but it isn’t like Ryan knew that – right? He sighed before slowly swiping over his screen to open the message.

_Where are u?_

It was a simple enough message, but his mind was a buzz with all the possible ways Ryan may be asking him that. He didn’t dare try to think too far into it. His fingers flew across the screen as he made his reply.

_I’m out for a bit. Shit has been crazy and I just need some time to myself. Why?_

A few minutes passed without a response, and Wrench was about to get up – assuming the other didn’t want to talk to him anymore. But his phone buzzed again and blue eyes widened when he read the contents on the screen. 

_I’m at the hospital. Your lil boyfriend did a number on me at my place, so I went to the ER to get stitches. I can’t get home and I don’t have any cash on me for a taxi. Come get me?_

Wrench felt guilt eat away at his insides. This was his fault. If he had just kept his mouth shut, Marcus wouldn’t have gone over there in the first place. At least not right away. He bit into his lip, wondering if this was maybe some kind of trick. But if they’re at the hospital, Ryan can’t try anything.

Right?

Some days, Wrench wasn’t sure what the other was truly capable of anymore. But all he’d have to do is go there and help Ryan get home – nothing wrong. He still wasn’t even sure what they were anymore, so it would be best to keep that meeting short. But it is the least he could do for being the reason the other is at the ER to begin with. 

_I’ll be there in 20._

A beat later, his phone buzzed.

_Thank U._

Wrench closed his eyes and sighed loudly. There were alarm bells going off in his head, knowing that this could potentially be a bad idea. But the other part of him, the one that ALWAYS made these decisions for him, felt the need to assuage the guilt that was bubbling in his gut. The lanky male got up, pocketed his phone, and quietly left the apartment. The trip to the nearby emergency room was largely uneventful, but his nerves became more frazzled the closer he got. Upon arriving, he gave Ryan’s name to one of the nurses at the front desk (taking a small bit of joy in how she failed miserably in hiding how his mask weirded her out) , and she gave him the room number of where he was residing. Apparently, he had been already been seen, and stitched up but was resting. Heavy steps brought him right outside of the right room, but he faltered before he could step inside. How much did Ryan know? He didn’t sound necessarily angry in his text, but one could never tell with the generally unstable male. It was like he had two people living within him; a real Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Yet, here he was within a few feet of him. 

‘What does that say about me?’ He wondered, replaying what Marcus has said to him not that long ago. He brushed that thought aside, and stepped inside -- pulling the curtain aside until the other was in view. 

“You showed up.” 

Wrench didn’t answer at first, his blue eyes were too busy scanning the other almost frantically – taking it all in. There were quite a bit of stitches, and his eye had been blackened considerably. Marcus had really done a number on him, it seemed. He bit his lip, trying to shove the guilt down before sitting on the seat next to the bed.

“Yeah, yeah. I said I would. You have to get home somehow. But I’m not…going to stay. I just wanted to make sure you got home”. The words “got home safe”, nearly left his mouth but he stopped himself before he could say them fully. The last thing he needed was for Ryan to think he was soft on him at all. This was already a bad idea. He stood up, moving away from the bed and eyed the other warily.

“I walked here, but I could just jack a car and get you to your place. Can you walk?”

Ryan hoisted himself up, and gingerly crawled out of the bed. Wrench wasn’t sure if he was actually in that much pain or if he was just playing it up to garner sympathy. It wasn’t working. Being in hospitals makes Wrench nervous, and the sooner he could get out of here – the better. Hell, the sooner he can get this entire thing over with, the better. The two exited the hospital and walked a block down, where Wrench hacked a vehicle for them. They clambered inside and set off in the direction of Palo Alto. The silence on the way was unnerving, to Wrench at least. He was normally the chatty type, but he found there wasn’t much he wanted to say at the moment. He was tired, and just wanted to not be a conscious thing for a little while. He gave an internal sigh of relief as he pulled into Ryan’s driveway, before shutting the car off. The two sat in silence for a second, and Wrench took this time to collect his thoughts.

“I…don’t want you to think that this means anything.” He said carefully. Ryan turned in his seat to stare at him quietly before he spoke.

“Nothing ever means anything to you, Reggie. That’s your problem.” He said with a bit of bite in his tone. Wrench flinched but kept his shoulders squared.

“I fucking came to help you, didn’t I? What the fuck ELSE do you want from me Ryan? Jesus Christ.” 

“I know shit got out of hand, but you always fucking rile me up –”

“You RAPED me, Ryan.” 

A thick silence fell through the car. This was the first time Wrench had given any of this much thought, much less said it out loud. He couldn’t conceal the hurt in his voice, and it hit the other male in waves. He couldn’t see the look on the others face, but he could feel the stare on the side of his head. He had never been so happy to have the protection of his mask before now. 

“You. You forced yourself on me. Call it what you want, but that’s what you did. I know I’ve put up with a lot before, but that... I don’t know if I can even deal with that. And right now I just really need some fucking space. I know you want to make things right between us, but I don’t think I can give you that right now.”  
He leaned over the other, unlocked the door and opened it himself before leaning back into his own seat. Ryan continued to stare at him with an unreadable expression, but he didn’t budge.

“Don’t try to contact me. I’ll call you when I’m ready to talk to you again.” He said just above a whisper. He turned his head to avoid looking at the other and flinched when the other finally exited the car – but not before slamming the door harder than necessary. Feeling like he shouldn’t risk staying any longer, he quickly peeled out of the driveway and sped off. He got maybe a mile away before swerving to pull over onto a random side street. He turned the car off and let the roof light turn off before ripping his mask off and tossing it on the passenger’s seat. His hands shook as he ran them through his hair a few times before gripping the steering wheel – breaths coming out in heavy pants. He gripped the steering wheel a bit harder before letting go, and sinking into the seat a little. Droplets his head thighs, and he hadn’t realized when he had started tearing up. Part of him had wished Marcus was there at that moment. He had always known the right thing to say, but then he thought of the fight they had – and he wondered if he had fucked that up too. 

Maybe going home tonight wouldn’t be a good idea.

He crawled into the backseat and curled up, making himself as small as possible. He’d go back when the sun was up. Maybe then things would be better. He could fix this.

He had to.


End file.
